Youth Ultra Gobi

Youth Ultra Gobi (青戈赛), officially known in Chinese as 玄奘之路青少年戈壁挑战赛, is not a conventional “competition,” but rather a youth development journey centered on Action, Teamwork, and Service. It consists of three stages—Campus Experience → City Exchange → Gobi Challenge, guiding students progressively through the dimensions of Heart, Mind, and Body along the path of To Know→ To Become→ To Make Known. Throughout the process, the emphasis is on educational value and authentic experiences, while also providing a platform for exchange and joint development among international schools.

Participants must be between 8 and 18 years old (born before March 1, 2018). The groups include G3-G6 (Elementary School, 68 km) and G7–G12 (Secondary School, 72 km). Each school may form multiple teams.

Depending on each school’s registration schedule, there are: Campus Experience (Sept–Dec): Each student shall complete a 5 km run. City Exchange (Jan–Mar): A 2-day, 1-night event covering roughly 25 km. Gobi Challenge (May 1–5): A 5-day, 4-night adventure, with a 3-day accumulative distance of 72 km / 68 km.

Accommodation Arrangement: From May 1–3, the students will be arranged to large Gobi tents, with 12 students per tent, separated by gender. Teachers will accompany the students throughout the course to ensure their safety and living order. On May 4, the students will switch to a quasi-four-star hotel in Dunhuang, providing a comfortable environment for rest. Meals: Meals are nutritionally balanced and include local specialty dishes, catering to diverse taste preferences of different students. If a student has special dietary needs (allergies, religious restrictions, vegetarian/vegan, etc.), his/her parent(s) must provide truthful and detailed information at registration to the Organizing Committee. The Organizing Committee will record these information in a unified manner and clearly mark relevant dishes with eye appealing indications at the dinning place of the camp, reminding the students to make personal choices based on their own conditions. Showering: At the Gobi campsite, due to large temperature differences between day and night, showers are not provided to prevent the students from catching a cold. Clean wash areas will be available for basic hygiene. After check in the Dunhuang hotel, the students may take showers normally.

Not at all. There are clear guideposts along the entire competition route, and each child is equipped with a GPS tracker and walkie-talkie, allowing the control center to monitor their location in real time and ensure they will not get lost. Even if a child walks comparably slowly, medical staff, support personnel, and a tail-end vehicle are on the course to provide assistance, ensuring complete coverage and safety.

A child is considered to have officially completed the competition if he/she finishes the full course, checks in at all required points, and carries all mandatory gear before closing time of each day. Violations such as taking a vehicle, missing check-ins, or failing to carry required gear will disqualify the results.

Yes. The Organizing Committee does not forbid the students to bring phones or smartwatches, but casual use at the campsite is not encouraged. Each school will have its own management rules, and the Organizing Committee can provide custody service in a unified manner. If a device is lost because it wasn’t submitted to the Organizing Committee for keeping, the student shall be solely responsible therefor. The students may also wear GPS-enabled smartwatches to keep their parents rest assured at any time.