A 'dad family' from Kentucky, USA, challenged the full marathon course, and all eight members of the family, including the youngest 6-year-old, completed 42.195 km, but it became a target of national criticism.



According to major US media on the 6th (local time), the Crawford family living in Bellevue, Kentucky, participated in the 25th 'Flying Pig Marathon' held in Cincinnati, Ohio on the 1st, 8 hours and 35 minutes after departure. reached the finish line in unison.



Cammy and Ben Crawford, 42 years old, crossed the finish line hand in hand with their six children (ages 6, 11, 15, 17, 19 and 20).



The Crawfords, who have over 12,600 Instagram followers and about 50,000 YouTube subscribers, posted a video and article of this scene on Instagram on the 3rd, and it caused a huge sensation.



The couple expressed their pride, saying, "The youngest had a very difficult time. He wanted to sit down every three minutes and take a break." They said, "I didn't know that my youngest son could finish the race with such a small body. I was deeply impressed by his ability."



He continued, "The youngest knew that Pringles potato chips were distributed at the 32km point of the marathon course. However, when we arrived at the 32km point in 7 hours, there was no one around the table and only empty boxes were left." He said he would buy a barrel and moved on."



However, the post provoked a strong backlash.



Comments expressing concerns about the health and safety of young children have flooded in, with some users even accusing the Crawfords of child abuse for 'likes' on Instagram.



Kara Gusher (43), a former long-distance runner who represented the United States at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics, also joined.



He tweeted: "A six-year-old has no idea how a marathon will affect his body and he doesn't know why he has to go through such pain. This little boy knows that he has the right to and should stop while physically suffering. I didn't realize it," he said.



Regarding this, the Crawfords said, "We value the emotional and physical health of children. If there is anything they want to do, we make sure that there is no risk and we support them to do it when they think it is okay," and emphasized, "We do not force it." .



The Crawford family were all wearing jerseys, but the marathon required people over 18 years of age to participate, which sparked a spark in the organizing committee.



Four of Crawford's six children are under the age of 18.



The organizers explained, "We value the safety of the participants and provide all protection and support to keep it." The reason why the Crawford family was given jersey numbers was because the father promised to accompany his young children at all times.





Experts warn that extreme activities such as marathons and long-distance runs can be dangerous for 6-year-olds because their growth plates are not yet fully developed.



However, the track and field media 'Runner's World' reported that Rainier, the youngest of the Crawfords and his wife, completed the half marathon three weeks ago and trained steadily, and Rainier's older sister Philia (11) also participated with her family in the 2017 Flying Pig Marathon when she was 6 years old. , reported that he had completed the race with a record of 6 hours 49 minutes 29 seconds.



The Crawfords and six siblings walked 2,000 miles (about 3,200 km) in the Appalachian Mountains in 2018 and published the story of their experiences in a book called '2000 Mile Together'.



(Photo = Crawford family's Instagram, Yonhap News)