BeijingMay 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — To implement the strategies of building a sports powerhouse and a healthy China, and to deepen the integration of sports and education, Xtep, in collaboration with the China School Sports Federation, has launched the “Campus Healthy Run Public Welfare Initiative” series of activities. The initiative focuses on the pain points of middle school students’ physical education exams and fitness tests, as well as their lack of scientific exercise knowledge. It brings together professional athletes and well-known sports bloggers to visit key middle schools across the country. Through an innovative model combining professional guidance, technological equipment, and public welfare services, it aims to popularize scientific exercise methods, improve campus training systems, and help young people build strong physiques. As a leading domestic sports brand, Xtep empowers youth development with professional expertise, promoting high-quality campus sports development.
“Test, Learn, Train, Compete” Closed Loop: Creating a New Model for Sports-Education Integration
Since its launch in 2025, Xtep’s “Campus Healthy Run Public Welfare Initiative” has continuously broken through the boundaries of traditional campus activities. In 2026, it has been comprehensively upgraded, moving beyond superficial public welfare education to become a professional, standardized, and systematic sports empowerment project, with significantly enhanced scale and influence.
This year, the activity has been upgraded to the “Campus Healthy Run Public Welfare Initiative – Physical Exam Classroom,” precisely targeting the needs of middle school students for physical education exams and fitness tests. Its footprint covers core regions in North China, Northeast China, East China, Central China, Southwest China, and South China. It has successively visited eight key middle schools: Capital Normal University Affiliated High School, Jilin Provincial Experimental Middle School, Jinan Licheng No. 2 Middle School, Henan Provincial Experimental Middle School, Sichuan Normal University Affiliated High School, Changsha Zhongya Peicui School, Tianjin No. 1 Middle School, and Chongqing Nankai Middle School, benefiting tens of thousands of teachers and students and forming a nationwide, large-scale campus sports public welfare matrix.
The activity innovatively implements an integrated closed loop of “Test, Learn, Train, and Compete,” precisely aligning with core physical exam items: The “Test” phase involves baseline assessments covering four basic fitness items: standing long jump, rope skipping, ball throwing, and shuttle run, accurately identifying weaknesses. The “Learn” phase features champion mentors sharing干货 (key insights), breaking down core exam preparation points such as running posture techniques, energy distribution, dealing with the “wall” (extreme fatigue point), and mental adjustment. The “Train” phase involves on-site practical teaching, with hands-on correction of movements and instruction on fragmented, efficient training methods. The “Compete” phase consists of a 4x100m relay race, using fun competition to ignite sports enthusiasm and test training results. This complete model, from baseline assessment to professional teaching, and from practical training to actual competition, comprehensively opens up the physical exam preparation pathway.
The activity also assembled a dual-mentor lineup of “professional athletes + experienced sports bloggers”: Marathon champions Xu Bingjie and Liu Min, along with national-level athlete Sha Zhengyou, shared scientific exam preparation techniques based on their competition experience. Sports bloggers Gong Xiangyang and Chunxiao provided practical guidance rooted in campus scenarios. Additionally, the activity added modules on sports injury prevention, pre-exam mental adjustment, and daily training planning, breaking the limitations of traditional single-subject physical education classes and achieving comprehensive empowerment from “specific score improvement” to “physical and mental growth.”
Core Product Empowerment: Hardcore Technology Aids Scientific Exam Preparation
With years of deep research in running science, Xtep brings marathon-level professional technology down to campus scenarios, tailored to the sports characteristics and physical exam needs of young people. Professional equipment lowers the barrier to exercise, supporting safe training and efficient competition preparation.
The 2026 “Campus Healthy Run Public Welfare Initiative” specially features the newly launched, world’s first flexible carbon plate running shoe, the Xtep 360X 3.0. This shoe was officially launched at the 11th Xtep 321 Running Festival and is better suited for youth physical exams and everyday running scenarios. The product is equipped with the world’s first BT400 flexible basalt carbon plate, combining basalt fiber and carbon fiber, offering lightweight properties, high toughness, and strong cushioning. Its gentle propulsion can help improve long-distance running speed, effectively buffer sports impact, and reduce lower limb joint injuries. It is suitable for physical exam items like the 800m, 1000m, and standing long jump, and better aligns with students’ exercise habits and force application characteristics. This event also brings the “Dreamer” colorway, carrying the running dreams of youth with its lightweight design.
The two-way empowerment of technological equipment and professional training has received unanimous praise from teachers and students. Students reported that the Xtep 360X 3.0 feels light on the feet with ample rebound, provides stable energy return in the latter half of long runs, handles corners smoothly, and its gentle carbon plate tuning allows beginners to adapt quickly, significantly improving training efficiency. Professional equipment allows students to intuitively feel the value of scientific exercise, stimulating their enthusiasm for independent training. School authorities stated that Xtep’s physical exam equipment precisely fits campus scenarios, balancing safety and performance, filling the hardware gap in specialized training, and providing solid technological support for the high-quality development of campus sports.
Continued Deep Cultivation of Campuses: Building a Full-Chain Campus Sports Service System
Deeply cultivating campus sports is a long-term strategic direction for Xtep. From product R&D and public welfare classes to building a sports ecosystem, Xtep is making continuous efforts across multiple dimensions. Since the launch of the “Campus Healthy Run Public Welfare Initiative,” the activity has evolved from single-school pilot projects to multi-city nationwide coordination, and from basic science education to precise physical exam empowerment, establishing a full-chain campus sports service system of “product empowerment + professional teaching + concept popularization.”
This original intention is consistent with Xtep’s “National Free Running” strategy. Over the years, Xtep has promoted professional running technology for the public benefit, sponsoring over a thousand marathons and road races, serving more than 2.4 million runners, and making professional sports accessible to the masses. Now, this original intention extends to the campus track: regularly bringing top-tier running resources into middle schools, allowing young people to enjoy professional guidance and equipment while preparing for physical exams. This is a vivid continuation of “National Free Running” in the campus context.
Standing at the forefront of the era of sports-education integration, Xtep firmly believes: When sports thrive, the youth thrive. In the future, Xtep will continue to promote the Campus Healthy Run to more middle schools, optimize courses, upgrade technology, and improve public welfare efforts, integrating scientific exercise and the spirit of perseverance into the growth of young people. Running endlessly, youth striving upwards, Xtep will use running as a bond to help young people run like never before, towards their own light and dreams, gathering youthful energy for a healthy China and a sports powerhouse.