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Six-year-old is running a half marathon-but is it safe?

Jarek Compston, an ambitious 6-year-old boy from Kentucky, will be running his first half marathon on Sunday.

He’s lacing up for a good cause: to benefit Amy for Africa, an organization founded by his mother, Amy, to provide food to impoverished communities in Uganda. He’s already raised about $5,000.

Although the cutoff age for most half marathons is 12, Jarek was allowed to run because he’s being trained by his mom, who’s a registered nurse and has finished several marathons.
“This was all his idea,” Amy tells Kentucky Today. “He told me and Chris that he wanted to run a half marathon so the African children could have some Christmas presents. I thought that was so sweet. For a 6-year-old, he has such a big heart for others.”
While some may raise concerns about having a 6-year-old run 13.1 miles — something most adults can’t even do — experts point out that there’s no scientific evidence that proves running long distances at a young age can cause long-term injuries.
Tim Noakes, a emeritus professor of exercise and sports science at the University of Cape Town, told Runners World in 2011: “Gifted young runners [6-to 10-year-olds], who choose to run these distances [excess of 8 to 10K] are at no greater risk of an unfavorable outcome or injury than are adults completing the same distances under the same environmental conditions.”


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