Man spotted running while carrying baby in Hong Kong Marathon was stopped, told to leave
A widely circulated video on social media shows the man with a baby strapped to his chest running along the West Kowloon Highway
A runner spotted carrying a baby during the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon on Sunday has raised safety concerns and sparked heated debate online about how the man was able to get on the course.
A widely circulated video on social media, which appears to have been taken by another runner, shows the man with a baby strapped to his chest, a backpack on his back, glasses slipping down his face and a phone in his hand.
The footage appears to show the man running along the West Kowloon Highway towards Stonecutters Island, which was part of the full marathon route between the 5km and 10km marks.
A race bib, which indicated he had set off in the full marathon group one, was pinned to the baby’s windproof cover.
Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates (HKAAA), organisers of the Hong Kong Marathon, confirmed that “race officials requested the violated runner to retire and leave the race course immediately during Sunday’s event to ensure safety”.
The HKAAA added that if race officials were to find any violations of the official rules on the race course, the concerned participant would be asked to retire and leave the course immediately, resulting in disqualification.