Ren Xiujuan (Chinese: 任秀娟; pinyin: Rèn Xiùjuān; born September 14, 1974 in Dalian, Liaoning) is a female Chinese long-distance runner who specialized in the marathon. She represented her country twice in the Olympic marathon, having her best placing of ninth in 1996. She also ranked fifth in the 10,000 metres at the 1997 World Championships in Athletics. She won a global title at the 1996 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, becoming the first Asian person to win that event.
She won the 1995 Beijing Marathon in a time of 2:30:00 and repeated that feat in 1996, improving to 2:27:13 hours. Her final race in Beijing came in 2001, when she placed third in 2:24:22 hours – a personal best.
International competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  China | |||||
| 1996 | Olympic Games | Atlanta, United States | 9th | Marathon | 2:31:21 |
| World Half Marathon Championships | Palma, Spain | 1st | Half marathon | 1:10:39 | |
| 1997 | World Championships | Athens, Greece | 5th | 10,000 m | 31:50.63 |
| 2000 | Olympic Games | Sydney, Australia | 10th | Marathon | 2:27:55 |
Personal bests
- 5000 metres - 15:49.90 min (2000)
- 10,000 metres - 31:13.21 min (1996)
- Marathon - 2:24:22 hrs (2001)
References
- Ren Xiujuan at World Athletics
- sports-reference