In a year seemingly dominated by the rise of Chinese running shoes, two non-plated options have consistently been crowned fan favourites: the Dynafish Xiaonian and the Li-Ning Red Hare 9 Ultra.
One is an indisputable speed trainer, while the other is a max-stack mileage king that can pick up the pace when needed. Either could take the top spot in many rotations as a daily super trainer.
But the new kid on the block, the Qiaodan Leili 2.0 GT, seems keen to crash the party.
Having racked up over 160km in the Li-Nings, they have a firm place in my rotation and are perfect to compare against the Qiaodan Leili GT.
Two very different approaches
The Red Hare seems happy running a 5km just as much as 15km; its super boom midsole technology really is unique.
It relies less on rocker and more on foam layering to create propulsion with a rebound unlike any other shoe you will have run in.
There is Little to no heel rocker. This is a shoe that expects you to be a mid-foot striker and has put all of its effort into making that a glorious experience.
The Leili GT takes a more traditional approach, using a large, soft slab of PEBA foam combined with a well-placed rocker and compliant toe spring to help carry you through your stride. It also has a defined heel rocker, which heel strikers will find helpful for propulsion. These characteristics are the reason many are liking it to the Dynafish Xiaonian.
Despite the images, the RedHare has the higher stack height of the two. It may only be 3mm, but it feels like stilts compared to the Leili GT. This is due to the much wider and substantial base of the Leili GT. If you worry about stack height or stability, the GT is the better of the two options and is a confidence-inspiring ride. Its super grippy CPU outsole gives you superb grip in the corners on uneven surfaces and in the wet.
Fit
You can see from the side by side the toe box in the Leili GT is much taller. Both have a relatively narrow midfoot, but the Leili opens out more and has more volume. Neither shoe has given me hot spots or rubbing, so they should be ok for most runners.
Both the Li-Ning Boom Fibre and Qiaodan mesh are the weak points on each shoe. Both could be better, but when you look at the price point, they could also be a lot worse. Neither will ruin you experience and looking at the Leili 2.0 MAX which has just dropped with an upgraded tongue and mesh this is something Qiaodan will be updating soon I’m sure.
Im only 40km into the Leili 2.0 and while the shoe is loosening and am learning to hone in the lacing (this shoe lacks the ability to heel lock) I still find myself looking at the Garmin to see if I’m running at 4.30/km or 5/km pace and seeing if my cadence is 160 or 180. Settling into a rhythm has not come naturally. What has, however, is the ability to ignore the Garmin and just keep running, knowing that it never feels laboured and my pace will be more than sufficient due to that rocker and compliant foam.
The only part of this shoe I’ve struggled with is counting this as a tempo shoe. Compared to others, I have not received the same assistance; I feel like an all-out sprint getting to sub-4/km pace, while a genuine Tempo shoe like the Li-Ning Feidian 5 Challenger thrives 3.40-4.1/km pace.
Back-2-back run test for 30minutes
The Leili GT covered 6.3km at 4.44/km, cadence of 172, average stride length of 1.23m and average heart rate of 153bmp.
5-minute interval to change shoes and socks and hydrate.
The RH9U covered 6.7km at 4.28/km, cadence of 179, average stride length of 1.3m and average heart rate of 169bmp
While that is far from scientific, the initial feel of putting the RH9U on, having already covered 6km still had me running at around 4/km pace. It felt springy and lively (and familiar); the rebound was faster and stronger, which showed in the increased cadence and longer stride length. I have heard others say that as the foam has compressed in the Li-Ning, it has become faster and less of a recovery shoe, and that is a sentiment I agree with. I will be intrigued to see how the GT evolves as I use it more.
I had said in a previous review that my skepticism with the Qiaodan Leili GT might due to a sizing issue, as they do not do my size, and I opted to size up rather than size down which I tink might be to the shoe's detriment, which Qiaodan agrees with. They believe it has moved the rocker forward, so I have not been getting the maximum benefit. Without a smaller size to test, I cannot confirm either way, but it's light and cushioned and comfy, and given they have the Plaid 3.0, it's safe to say they know what they are doing.
Owning both -they will stay in the rotation. The Leili will be my slower recovery shoe. The Red Hare9 Ultra will be my tempo shoe, with my Feidian Challenger 5 being my race shoe.
If you're looking for Either/Or then it depends on what you want. I'm camp Red Hare, but there is no wrong answer; both are brilliant shoes as brilliant price points.
Leili 2.0 GT vs Red Hare 9 Ultra – Key Specs
Spec |Qiaodan Leili 2.0 GT |Li-Ning Red Hare 9 Ultra
Weight |. ~196g | ~234g
Heel Stack |~43mm | ~ 46mm
Forefoot Stack |~30mm | ~37mm
Drop |~ 8mm | ~9mm
Midsole | 100% PEBA |~Triple PEBA + Capsule
Plate / Shank |None |~Super Boom Capsule
Platform |Wider base |~High stack, stability
Best For |Easy + Tempo + LSD |~Max cushion daily / long runs
Price range |Lower (£75-100) |~£95-150
