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| Nationality | Chinese | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1973-01-09)9 January 1973 (age 52)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 162 cm (5 ft 4 in)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 50 kg (110 lb)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and Field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event(s) | 1500 metres,3000 metres,5000 metres,10000 metres,Marathon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personalbests | 1500 metres: 3:51.92[1] 3000 metres: 8:06.11WR[1] 5000 metres: 14:51.87[1] 10000 metres: 29:31.78[1] Marathon: 2:24:07[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Wang Junxia (simplified Chinese:王军霞;traditional Chinese:王軍霞;pinyin:Wáng Jūnxiá; born 9 January 1973) is aChinese formerlong-distancerunner who is the current world record holder at 3,000 meters. She also held the world record for the 10,000 meters for 23 years, between 1993 and 2016, which is a record in itself. Her best years were from 1991 to 1996. Wang was coached byMa Junren until 1995 and by Mao Dezhen from 1995 to her retirement after the1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Born inJiaohe, Jilin, Wang beatEthiopianGete Wami to win the1992 World Junior Championships in Athletics in10,000 m (32:29.90) inSeoul,Korea.
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In April 1993, Wang set a world-leading time and former Asian best inmarathon (2:24:07). In May, she broke the Asian record of 3000 m in a fast time of 8:27.68 in the Chinese National Championships. In August, Chinese women distance runners under coach Ma Junren stunned the world and swept the world titles from1500 m to 10,000 m inStuttgart, Germany. Wang claimed the world title in 10,000 m (30:49.30), although she was sick before the race. In less than a month, she went on to win the3000 m and 10,000 m in theChinese National Games with three world records in three races.
On 8 September 1993, she won the 10,000 m final in a world record of 29:31.78, which bettered the former record by 42 seconds and was also the first-ever sub-30 minute performance in this event. The 10,000 record would remain on the books as the world record until the2016 Olympics when it was smashed by EthiopianAlmaz Ayana.
On 11 September, she finished second in 1500 m behind her teammate,Qu Yunxia in another world record breaking race. Qu ran 3:50.46 (world record at the time) against Wang's 3:51.92. Four years later,Bo Jiang andYinglai Lang ran slightly faster than Wang in the same race. Qu's record remained on the books until it was finally beaten byGenzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia when she ran 3:50.07 at theHerculis meet inMonaco on 15 July 2015. Wang is currently fifth on the all-time list.
In 3000 m heats on 12 September, Wang's teammates broke the 3000 m world record in the first heat. This world record was just briefly held, when it was erased by Wang in the second heat. The next day she claimed the 3000 m in another record time 8:06.11. She also won the World Cup Marathon Championships later in the year.
In 1994, she was awarded theJesse Owens prize on the remarkable performances in 1993. She was the first and only Chinese and Asian person to win the prize. Although she won theAsian Games in 10,000 m with a world-leading time (30:50.34) later in the year inHiroshima, her world-record breaking form was obviously gone.
In 1995, Wang and her teammates broke up with their coach Ma due to prize money and his harsh coaching style. After a short period of training on their own without a major success, Wang started to train under coach Mao Dezhen to prepare for the 1996 Olympics. InNanjing, she announced a comeback in the Olympics Trials, where she ran quality times in both 5000 m and 10,000 m.
| This section of abiography of a living persondoes notinclude anyreferences or sources. Please help by addingreliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourcedmust be removed immediately. Find sources: "Wang Junxia" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(June 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
At the 1996 Summer Olympics, Wang won the new Olympic event, women's 5000 m (14:59.88) and a silver in the 10,000 m (31:02.58) just a second behindPortugueseFernanda Ribeiro. Ribeiro made a heroic final lapkick that surprised Wang and perhaps because she was not used to being challenged, she was unable to react to it. In fact, not only did both women's performances better the previous Olympic record in the 10,000 m, they ran it in such high temperatures that officials were handing out cups of water in the middle of the race, like a marathon. She retired after the Olympics and married Zhan Yu.
The Guardian reported in 2001 that Wang was living anonymously inBeijing.[3] In 2008 Wang and her husband Huang Tianwen moved toDenver,Colorado.[4] In 2012, she told the Spanish newspaperEl Pais that she was writing her autobiography.[4]
TheInternational Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) listed Wang in itsHall of Fame.[5] Wang was the only Chinese athlete to repeat her 1993 successes at the 1996 Olympics, under Coach Ma, though Qu had managed a bronze medal at the 1992 Olympics. However, there were doping allegations about her 1993 performances.Yuan Weimin, former Director General of theState General Administration of Sports and Chairperson of theChinese Olympic Committee, had confirmed in 2009 in his book that six athletes coached by her former coach Ma Junren were dropped from the2000 Summer Olympics because they were tested positive for doping.[6] Coach Ma was also fired from the Chinese national team in 2000. During the2012 Summer Olympics, a journalist even lumped Wang and compatriotQu Yunxia into a group of so-called "chemical sisters".[7][8]
On 3 February 2016,Tencent Sports exclusively published a March 1995 letter reportedly from Wang and nine other athletes under Ma's tutelage. In it, they alleged Coach Ma forced them to dope.[9] Zhao Yu, the investigative author who had received the letter, said Wang and others came forward because Coach Ma had told them to take personal responsibilities, should they get caught. The letter was initially published in 2015 in Zhao's book, but only gained traction in February 2016.[6] The story raised suspicion over the legitimacy of Wang's world records. The IAAF confirmed it had reached out to theChinese Athletics Association for verification and would investigate, but the latter has yet to respond.[10] The IAAF was expected to discuss a proposal to wipe all pre-2005 world records in August 2017, due to it having only stored blood and urine samples since 2005.[11]
In May 2025,Beatrice Chebet ran 8:11.56 for3000 metres, falling 5.45 seconds short of Junxia's officially recognized 8:06.11 world record.[12] Given thecontroversy surrounding Wang's world record, some organizations outside ofWorld Athletics, such asTrack and Field News, do not recognize it.[13]
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Women's 10,000 m World Record Holder 8 September 1993 – 12 August 2016 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Women's 3000 m World Record Holder 12 September 1993 – | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Awards | ||
| Preceded by | United Press International Athlete of the Year 1993 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Women's Track & Field Athlete of the Year 1993 | Succeeded by |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by | Women's 3000 m Best Year Performance 1993 | Succeeded by |
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World U20 Champions in women's10,000 metres | |
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