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Olga Wong

Ambrose Li

Hong Kong police are investigating a report of child abuse after a runner took part in a marathon while carrying his baby.
The investigation was launched after a viral video showing the baby strapped to the runner’s chest during the race sparked public concern.
Police said they received a report on Monday accusing the mainland Chinese man of child abuse. No arrests have been made so far.
“The investigator in charge has already reached out to the runner and is arranging a time for him to return to Hong Kong to assist in the investigation,” an insider said, adding that the man lived in Nanning in the Guangxi region.
“The family came to Hong Kong from the mainland to join the marathon and have since returned home.”


The runner was spotted carrying the baby during Sunday’s Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon.
A widely circulated social media video, apparently shot by another runner, shows the man jogging with the infant strapped to his chest. He can be seen carrying a backpack, with a phone in his hand and his glasses slipping down his face.
The footage shows the man running along the West Kowloon Highway towards Stonecutters Island, part of the full marathon route between the 5km and 10km marks.
Organisers of the marathon, the Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates, later confirmed they had ordered the runner to retire from the race immediately for safety reasons.
They added that they reserved the right to bar the participant from future events.
Dr Edmund Lam Wing-wo, a family physician, said the marathon runner had risked causing shaken baby syndrome, also known as abusive head trauma, due to the continuous jolts for more than two hours.
“A short period of jostling motions could already cause permanent damage and would be even riskier if it’s for such a long time,” Lam said.
“Such motions could cause compression of the spinal cords and tear veins, leading to intracranial haemorrhage.
“This could result in unconsciousness, cramps, vomiting, prolonged crying … slow responses and other minor injuries that could only surface gradually in a week or two. It would be best to go for a medical check-up at that point.”
Lam said exposure to harsh winds and crowds for two hours was also not ideal for the baby. The child could pick up germs and viruses, while the infant’s immune system could have been affected by the dry and cold weather, he noted.
He added that running a marathon with a baby could constitute abuse, explaining that any situation that posed risks to a child’s life should be reported. Whether it would be considered neglect or abuse would require further investigation, he said.
Lobo Louie Hung-tak, senior lecturer of health and physical education at the Education University of Hong Kong, said the runner had made “a grave error” from a sports science and safety perspective.
“The man could also [trip and] crash into the baby, with his weight and from that height, there would be a risk of injuries or even death … Together with the persistent jolts, it’s appropriate that police are handling this as child abuse,” he said.
Louie said it was understandable that organisers had not initially noticed the runner and his baby because of how packed the route was for the first few kilometres and the fact that participants could have been wearing a bin bag while they warmed up.


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A widely circulated social media video, apparently shot by another runner, shows the man jogging with the infant strapped to his chest. Photo: Handout

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The force reached out to the runner and is arranging a time for him to return to the city to assist with investigation, an insider says


The force reached out to the runner and is arranging a time for him to return to the city to assist with investigation, an insider says.


Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon

Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates

Marathons

Police probe child abuse report after man runs with baby in Hong Kong Marathon

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The force reached out to the runner and is arranging a time for him to return to the city to assist with investigation, an insider says

The force reached out to the runner and is arranging a time for him to return to the city to assist with investigation, an insider says