It won't be long before China becomes a regular stop for world's top runners

Posting photos of exhausted athletes with medals around their necks has become a favorite way for marathon runners and fans to connect on social media in China.

And the winners of a "marathon photo sharing competition" would surely be those in the Abbott World Marathon Majors (AWMM). However, only a very small number of my marathon-running friends have the opportunity to join the majors because all of those races currently take place outside of China.

According to the Chinese Athletics Association, nearly 5 million people took part in 1,102 registered running events in China last year - nearly 20 times the 2014 number. However, none of those events matched the standard or attractiveness of AWMM.