show video detail
Sport officials build rectangular running circuit with 90-degree bends ahead of Chinese Communist
- Published_at:2014-07-28
- Category:People & Blogs
- Channel:GoogleNews
- tags:
- description: Cutting corners: Sport officials build rectangular running circuit with 90-degree bends ahead of Chinese Communist Party visit because it was quicker than constructing an oval track Bungling sport officials in China have built a rectangular running track because they were concerned they wouldn't get an oval one finished in time for a Communist Party inspection. The bizarre circuit was built as a part of a major refurbishment of a 10,000 square foot stadium in Tonghe County in the north-eastern Heilongjiang province. With the big-budget project running behind schedule and an inspection by notoriously finicky Communist Party officials imminent, managers made the decision to quite literally cut corners and create a running track with awkward 90-degree bends as they are easier to measure and lay out. Almost everything about the stadium is impressive - from the the perfectly laid grass in the centre of the sports field to the massively improved seating facilities for spectators. But there is one glaringly obvious issue making the sleek Tonghe County stadium one of the strangest in the world Locals invited to test the new running track for an episode of regional television programme Newsnight had little positive to say about its unorthodox design. 'It all looks jolly good - apart from the track which doesn’t really look up to standard,' The Telegraph quoted one woman as saying. 'It is strange indeed... Normally curves speed people up but these corners slow you down. It is quite inconvenient,' added another woman, who abandoned her lap after struggling with the corners. The official explanation for the odd design of the track was that the original oval lane system had become so worn down that it could no longer be used as a template for repainting. A last-minute decision by Communist Party officials to visit the site meant the lanes had to be recreated in a hurry, and it was decided there was not enough time to measure out an oval circuit.
| ranked in date | views | likes | Comments | ranked in country (#position) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-07-30 | 32,418 | 11 | 4 |
( ,#84)
|
| 2014-07-31 | 45,765 | 12 | 5 |
(,#70)
|
| 2014-08-01 | 49,638 | 12 | 5 |
(,#81)
|
