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How does a six-year-old girl go about running a marathon? One mile at a time.

Six-year-old Keelan Glass ran the Showdown Half Marathon last week in 2:47:30. Not only did she become the youngest to ever run a half marathon  she now holds a single-age world record according to the Association of Road Racing Statisticians.

By all accounts, the petite blonde first-grader took the 13.1 mile challenge on herself. Her mom, Tracy, a triathlete, helped her train but didn’t push her into running the race.  After each mile, her mom asked her if she wanted to continue, and she did, crossing the finish line sub 3 hours completely unaware of her major accomplishment.

So, are we going to see a slew of kindergartner’s sign up for marathons now? Probably not. The Showdown Half in Dallas has no age restriction but a runner has to be 18-years-old to run any of the marathon majors (NYC, Boston, London, Berlin) with the exception of Chicago which requires runners to be 16 or older on race day. (Chicago participants 16-17 years of age must have a statement signed by their parent or legal guardian permitting them to participate.)

Youth running is not an organized sport before middle school, unlike AYSO, Pop Warner football or Little League baseball. Nevertheless, participation has grown enormously because, among other reasons, there is no barrier to entry meaning that it is cheap (only a pair of running shoes required).

Injury patterns and other issues in youth football, basketball, baseball, hockey and soccer have been extensively studied, but not in youth running. While there is no definitive medical research on the effects of long-distance running on children, the NY Times does report on a couple of studies of addressing whether kids should run marathons.  Though inconclusive, the injuries noted involved mostly twisted ankles and scraped knees as a result of falls.

Still, many in the sports medicine community believe it’s better to be safe than sorry. Restrictions are based on both physical and emotional concerns. This is partially intuitive.  It is known that in children, the growth plates (areas at the end of the bones) are not fully developed. They aren’t closed yet and, therefore, there`s a potential risk of damaging these plates.

The reason I mention all of this medical stuff is that some people think Glass is too young to run a distance race. Supporters praise her accomplishment while critics fault her parents for allowing her to participate and even question her motives (which involved raising money for a local pregnancy center). There are parents who do push their children, whether or not that is their conscious intention, but I don’t get the sense that Glass’s parents had ulterior motives (they even consulted a physician before allowing their daughter to race).

Besides, I’ve seen plenty of 6-year-olds at SCOI with broken growth plates as a result of soccer, skateboarding, and other other activities so I’m not sure why distance running is being singled out as dangerous.

So why would a race director allow a 70+ yr old runner with heart disease to run but not a healthy school kid?  Maybe they do not want to have to deal with the logisitics of having kids on the course. Maybe they’re afraid of lawsuits. But it seems like if a parent is willing to run with their child – at their child’s pace – and monitor their progress, they should be allowed to run.

As for me, I’d rather have a daughter who wants to run a marathon than one who prefers to sit on the couch and watch TV.  But that’s just me.

Congratulations Keelan. Look forward to following your running exploits in the future.

Photo Credit: Tracy Glass Facebook

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