Energy supply and influencing factors of mountain marathon runners from Baiyin marathon accident in China

High temperature impacts the performance of marathon athletes, and hypothermia harms athletes. Twenty-one runners died, and eight were injured in the China Baiyin marathon on May 22, 2021. It’s a typical human life test. The energy equations are combined with the maximum energy supply of Chinese male athletes to study this accident. We analyze the human body’s route slope, travel speed, and heat dissipation under low temperatures in this marathon. The study shows that the large slope and long-distance of CP2 to CP3 section and the low temperature during the competition are the main reasons for the accident. The method of quantifying the slope and temperature and calculating the percentage of athletes’ physical consumption proposed in this paper can evaluate the route design of field marathons. We suggest that the physical energy consumption ratio of 90%, i.e. 315 cal/min/kg, should be taken as the maximum energy supply for Chinese male marathon runners. Dangerous risk zones for wind speed and temperature on dangerous path sections are also formulated for athletes to make their assessments. This paper’s theories and methods can effectively help design the marathon route and determine the race time.