Bungling sport officials in China have built a rectangular running track because they were concerned they wouldn’t get an oval one finished in time for a Communist Party inspection.

The bizarre circuit was built as a part of a major refurbishment of a 10,000 square foot stadium in Tonghe County in the north-eastern Heilongjiang province.

With the big-budget project running behind schedule and an inspection by notoriously finicky Communist Party officials imminent, managers made the decision to quite literally cut corners and create a running track with awkward 90-degree bends as they are easier to measure and lay out.

Almost everything about the stadium is impressive – from the the perfectly laid grass in the centre of the sports field to the massively improved seating facilities for spectators.

But there is one glaringly obvious issue making the sleek Tonghe County stadium one of the strangest in the world.

Locals invited to test the new running track for an episode of regional television programme Newsnight had little positive to say about its unorthodox design.
After appearing on the Newsnight show, the designers of the Tonghe County running track were widely ridiculed on Chinese social media website Weibo.

Despite being the butt of many jokes, some experts have raised concerns about the design, saying it presents a risk of serious injury to athletes.