Brisk walking groups in China march on despite flak for noise, obstruction

Netizens cite Zhuhai car attack to highlight how these 'disruptive' groups rankle society

- Ang Qing

BEIJING - They march in unison to the beat of blaring Chinese music, chanting "one, two, three, four" while garbed in the same bright-coloured custom-made uniform.

Nicknamed "explosive walking groups", these brisk walkers - who can number in their hundreds - take to their exercise of choice with military regimentation, often with their own flag and sign bearers, and even a videographer.

On short video apps like Kuaishou and WeChat, dozens of communities across China share clips of them moving in synchrony - a group activity that appears to have already gained traction by the late-2000s.

When a man drove a sport utility vehicle into a crowd at a sports hall in Zhuhai on the evening of Nov 11, killing 35 and wounding 43, many of the victims belonged to these walking groups.

Videos of the carnage show members from at least three such groups sprawled on the ground, surrounded by fallen flags, stray shoes and the cries of their companions.

Online, some netizens have quickly used the Zhuhai attack to highlight how these groups have rankled Chinese society in recent years by obstructing traffic and creating noise - criticisms echoed by local media.

But neither fear nor criticism can deter these brisk walkers.

Mr Xu Yue, 60, who joined a brisk walking group in Beijing in November 2023, said there was no need to worry about safety as the recent spate of violence, which included a stabbing rampage on Nov 16 in Jiangsu province, comprised "isolated incidents".

"The attacks are not common phenomena," said the retired businessman.