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Lily Canter

When her relationship ended last year, Ria Xi did what many heartbroken twenty-somethings do: she went for a run.
“For my 25th birthday, I decided to run every day for 30 days. It was the only thing I could hold onto. The only thing that reminded me I had control.”
Soon after her 30-day streak, running snowballed into an obsession, and she began chasing world records after quitting her Silicon Valley tech job.
Within a year, Beijing-born Xi had set a world first in Egypt, completing a 567km (352-mile) run on the Sinai Trail on a desert route no one had run on before.
“It was a very transformative experience, from being heartbroken and not feeling very accomplished to doing something a lot of people thought was impossible.”

The attempt became the foundation of a bigger project: to run 20,000km across Asia and Europe in 2026, starting in Russia and ending in Portugal.
For 27-year-old Xi, the appeal is not only athletic but existential.
“I’ve always lived the stories that other people have told me, or society has told me. I moved to the US from China to try to find success, to get a green card.
“I was working as head of growth at a start-up with a good paying job, and that was not the answer for me. So this challenge is a big, powerful part of [finding success] and the whole motivation was creating my own story and my own narrative.”
Training for a transcontinental run soon became a full-time job, with Xi living off savings and small profits from day trading, while being based in Portugal.
She now plans to run along the historic Silk Road trade route, symbolically linking the dual parts of her identity – East and West.

“There’s always this idea of finding home and connecting the East and the West. I will be following the general Silk Road countries and the major cities that were part of that historical path of migration.”
Xi is currently eyeing a June start, a choice dictated by weather windows for the high and cold sections such as Siberia and the Pamir Highway through Afghanistan.
“There’s a very short window between June and September that I can run through that part of the world,” she explained. “The highest point is 4,600 metres (15,000 feet) and going through that part in the winter can get below -10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit).”
If the concept sounds incredibly complex, that is because it is. Running, Xi said, was the easy part.
“It feels like running a one-person start-up right now,” she said, listing route design, visas, weather modelling, fundraising, risk management and storytelling as parallel workstreams.
“A big part is also storytelling. Potentially, I’m trying to bring a film crew out there to create a documentary.”
Unusually for an athlete attempting a feat on this scale, Xi’s coach is not human. Instead, she has turned to artificial intelligence (AI).
As a former tech worker, it felt more natural to draw on AI for support, primarily using ChatGPT.












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Ria X | The 20,000km Experiment (@whereisriax)



Xi began by using it as a research tool to understand the principles of endurance training before using it for her specific body and training goals.
From there, it became an essential tool, developing nutrition strategies, route plans, kit lists and even interpreting medical scans.
“I actually gave it an MRI scan result for my knee, and it helped me interpret the result. What is so useful is the memory. If I mention training load, it reminds me, ‘because of your knee condition, maybe consider this’.”
During a recent 100-mile challenge in Germany along the Berlin Wall Trail, she used the ChatGPT app on her phone for live pacing and fuelling guidance.
She input progress at landmarks, sometimes with a quick photo of her watch data, and received instant course corrections and advice.
“It kind of captured my entire mental state and all the problems I was going through throughout the whole run,” she said. “Having someone always there to support me, even though it’s not a person, is incredibly helpful.”

Xi has also experimented with voice mode on multi-day routes to ask about water sources, local history and accommodation on the fly. But her ultimate dream is to have deeper integration with other smart devices.
“If it had my GPS location, could track my heart rate, then instead of me texting ‘How am I doing?’ it could reach out to me. I really do think that’s the future of athletics,” she said.
Having AI do the heavy thinking for her means Xi can concentrate on heavy-duty training.
She has recently returned from a 12-day run along the Camino Trail in France, covering 780km, and she is now aiming to average 150km to 200km per week.
Sometimes, it takes a sense of humour to get into training mode – and a show-stopping outfit.
When she did not want to go out on a run, she asked herself, “Is there anything that can motivate me to get out there?”












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Ria X | The 20,000km Experiment (@whereisriax)



She came across a dinosaur costume while she was staying in northern Portugal. “The thought of running like a dinosaur seemed hilarious for myself, but also, I imagined, for other people.
“The thought of bringing smiles to people’s faces is actually a great motivation to get out to run. And it worked! People received it quite well on the run, and even better on social media.”
The reel on her Instagram account @whereisriax has attracted more than 285,000 likes since she posted it in early September.
“I think we could all use some mischief in life, and I consider a running costume an incredible therapeutic investment.”












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Ria X | The 20,000km Experiment (@whereisriax)



Her next block of training is not just about volume.
“I’m trying to improve on the speed front a little bit. This will free up time on Project 20,000 to interact with people along the way and do more storytelling.”
She also needs to find time for fundraising by reaching out to brands for partnerships.
Xi is keenly aware of how her story can inspire other women in an endurance space dominated by men.
A month after finishing her Egyptian trek, Xi took part in her first ultra race, The 9 Dragons in Hong Kong. She was struck by how few women were on the start line of the two-day event. It is a true test of grit and resilience, with a 50-mile race on the first day and a 50km race on the second, with 8,000 metres of elevation gain.
“Growing up in Asia, there is an expectation of what it means to be a woman, and there are not a lot of role models of hardcore women pushing themselves or being the first at something. Often, there is a man first, and then women try to follow that.
“A big part of my mission is showing girls they can go out and do hard things.”

Xi talks about monks as a metaphor: most people will never live that ascetic life, but their presence widens the horizon of what a life can be.
“They remind people they can live different lifestyles,” she said.
And running across two continents is Xi’s way of making that reminder visible, one step at a time.
Like what you read? Follow SCMP Lifestyle on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also sign up for our eNewsletter here.


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Ria Xi shows girls “they can go out and do hard things” on her run on the Sinai Trail in Egypt, in January 2025. Photo: Jack Lawes

Ria Xi with some new friends in the town of Dahab in South Sinai, Egypt. Photo: Instagram/whereisriax

Xi stops to refuel on her desert run on the Sinai Trail in Egypt. Photo: Instagram/whereisriax

Xi takes a selfie on the Tour du Mont Blanc that winds through France, Italy and Switzerland. Photo: Instagram/whereisriax

Xi was filled with misgivings when she started the 9 Dragons ultra race in Hong Kong, just a month after completing her gruelling Egyptian trek. She finished 8th in the women’s category, 31st overall. Photo: Instagram/whereisriax

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Joan MacDonald lifts weights at the gym. Photo: Joan MacDonald

Joan MacDonald with her daughter, fitness trainer Michelle MacDonald, who has spent almost a decade transforming her mother’s health. Photo: Instagram/michellemacdonaldofficial

Rotstein (centre) leads a Buff Bones class. Photo: buff-bones.com

Joan MacDonald lifts a kettlebell as part of a strength training workout to build muscle and bone. Photo: Instagram/trainwithjoan

Hong Kong orthopaedic surgeon Dr Athena Au. Photo: Dr Athena Au

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Catherine Lau (front row, second), a lawyer and avid runner who completed the Six World Marathon Majors, running at the Jockey Club Fit City fundraising programme. Photo: Edmond So

Catherine Lau (second left), a Hong Kong lawyer and avid runner whose participation in the Tokyo Marathon in 2024 completed the Six World Marathon Majors, runs at a Jockey Club Fit City fundraising event. Photo: Edmond So

In January 2015, Lau competed in the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon and finished the race in three hours 23 minutes, her personal best time. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Lau

After finishing the Tokyo Marathon in March 2024, Lau became a six-star finisher, a title given to those who complete the six Abbott World Marathon Majors. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Lau

Lau ran the Boston Marathon in April 2015, having qualified for the race with her Hong Kong Marathon time of three hours and 28 minutes in February 2014. She describes her experience as “unforgettable”, owing to the rainy and cold weather. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Lau

After her first attempt to compete in the New York Marathon was thwarted by the Covid-19 pandemic, Lau managed to run the race in 2023. She finished in four hours and 37 minutes. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Lau

After competing in the Berlin Marathon, Lau ran marathons in Paris and Zurich before taking a break from competitive running. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Lau

Lau received her six-star medal in 2024, after she completed all six Abbott World Marathon Majors. Photo: Catherine Lau

Catherine Lau and her nephew Lau Yik-hei, who is a member of the Hong Kong triathlon national squad. Photo: Edmond So

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Dennis Lui Wai-keung, the first Hongkonger to complete all seven world major marathons in under three hours. The seasoned runner often trains along Repulse Bay beach. 23AUG25 SCMP / Karma Lo

Dennis Lui, Hong Kong’s first runner to complete the seven major world marathons in under three hours each, runs his third Berlin Marathon, in 2022. Photo: courtesy of Dennis Lui

Lui holds his seven Marathon Majors medals. Photo: courtesy of Dennis Lui

Lui runs the 2024 London Marathon, where he achieved his current personal best of 2:44:30. Photo: courtesy of Dennis Lui

Lui runs the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon in 2023. Photo: courtesy of Dennis Lui

Lui runs the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon in 2019. Photo: Courtesy of Dennis Lui

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Lui displays his awards in Repulse Bay, Hong Kong, where he often trains. Photo: Karma Lo

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Vicky Sham runs on a trail in Tai Mo Shan, Hong Kong. Photo: Vicky Sham

Alice Moore (née McLeod), the fastest woman in the Hong Kong Four Trails Ultra Challenge 2024 (above), shares her fuelling tactics for long runs. Experts explain the dangers of not getting enough calories during races. Photo: Action Asia

Vicky Sham at the 2023 Hong Kong 100 trail running event. Photo: Vicky Sham

Hong Kong-based ultra running expert Elliot Froidevaux says fuelling properly is “vital”. Photo: Action Asia Events

Moore on the MacLehose Trail during the Hong Kong Four Trails Ultra Challenge 2024. Photo: Alan Li

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Lifestyle

Health & Wellness

Health

Beijing-born Ria Xi turned her heartbreak into a new career and an inspiring mission to run from Russia to Portugal, using AI as her coach


Beijing-born Ria Xi turned her heartbreak into a new career and an inspiring mission to run from Russia to Portugal, using AI as her coach.


Trail running and hiking

Extreme fitness

ChatGPT and other generative AIs

Artificial intelligence

After a break-up, Beijing-born tech-turned-ultrarunner plans AI-backed Silk Road trek

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Beijing-born Ria Xi turned her heartbreak into a new career and an inspiring mission to run from Russia to Portugal, using AI as her coach

Beijing-born Ria Xi turned her heartbreak into a new career and an inspiring mission to run from Russia to Portugal, using AI as her coach