Rules changed at last moment for robot competition in Shandong

A robot mountain-climbing competition set to take place Monday in Shandong province had a last-minute rule change when organisers realised judges are unable to keep up with the robo racers.

Teams engaged in intense training with their robots today in hopes of conquering what is often called the foremost of the so-called "Five Sacred Mountains of China."

Event organiser China Media Group decided against assigning at least one judge to follow every robot when they realised the machines far outpaced humans.

Judges will now stand ready at various checkpoints to observe the race instead.

The event will see robots of all types race up 3,100 steps reaching the height of 600 metres.