Japanese barred from Beijing marathon in 'safety measure'

Organisers of the Beijing Marathon have barred Japanese runners from taking part due to safety concerns after a fresh flare-up in a territorial dispute between Japan and China, a report said yesterday.

"If they choose [to represent] other nationalities, including China, Japanese can take part," the influential Asahi newspaper's online edition quoted a source at the organising committee of the November 25 marathon as saying.

The committee made the decision on the basis of the safety of athletes, the daily said in a report from the Chinese capital.

Japanese companies such as Canon had sponsored the annual event until last year, but they are not sponsoring it this year.

Already 26,000 people had signed up for the marathon since its registration process began on Thursday, Asahi said.

Japan was included in the nationality section in the marathon's online registration page until last year, but had been deleted this year, it added.