India's Marathon Boy, Budhia Singh, Now 4
It seems that Budhia Singh is making a name for himself in long distance running circles not only in India, but around the world now.
An article in London's "Independent" even went so far as to call him "India's Forrest Gump".
But there's a question whether or not the 4-year-old Indian boy is doing long distance running completely at his own choosing. Here's one of the first stories from mid-September in the BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4241958.stm
The article states that, "He runs seven hours at a stretch, sometimes as much as 48km (30 miles). On a daily basis." However, it is the following statement - in the same article - that causes many concern: "Budhia's coach has now set his eyes on a place in the Guinness Book of World Records."
Most of the response towards Singh's "coach" has been negative; however, some, like this blog entry, simply admire the young man's ability, regardless of his handler's intentions.
In fact, it isn't just that the responses have been negative towards Singh's coach, Biranchi Das, the Orissa state government, as of this November 19th article, has gotten involved.
But, nonetheless, this mid-December article, "Four-year-old boy in fast lane," in India's National Newspaper, "The Hindu", seems to state a sense of "buy in" with targeting his development for a 2016 Olympic spot (which seems unlikely at the age of 15).
(I can tell you that I've been concerned about people's viewpoint of me and Waverly's doing the half marathon. Yes, I threw out the word "challenge" in the KTRK story and it was. But, if she had said, "No, Dad, I don't think I want to do it," that would have been all there was to it. The subsequent media coverage that Waverly has experienced recently has just been a result of recognizing her commitment and hard work and hoping that other youngsters will see her as an example of what is possible. -- JW)
An article in London's "Independent" even went so far as to call him "India's Forrest Gump".
But there's a question whether or not the 4-year-old Indian boy is doing long distance running completely at his own choosing. Here's one of the first stories from mid-September in the BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4241958.stm
The article states that, "He runs seven hours at a stretch, sometimes as much as 48km (30 miles). On a daily basis." However, it is the following statement - in the same article - that causes many concern: "Budhia's coach has now set his eyes on a place in the Guinness Book of World Records."
Most of the response towards Singh's "coach" has been negative; however, some, like this blog entry, simply admire the young man's ability, regardless of his handler's intentions.
In fact, it isn't just that the responses have been negative towards Singh's coach, Biranchi Das, the Orissa state government, as of this November 19th article, has gotten involved.
But, nonetheless, this mid-December article, "Four-year-old boy in fast lane," in India's National Newspaper, "The Hindu", seems to state a sense of "buy in" with targeting his development for a 2016 Olympic spot (which seems unlikely at the age of 15).
(I can tell you that I've been concerned about people's viewpoint of me and Waverly's doing the half marathon. Yes, I threw out the word "challenge" in the KTRK story and it was. But, if she had said, "No, Dad, I don't think I want to do it," that would have been all there was to it. The subsequent media coverage that Waverly has experienced recently has just been a result of recognizing her commitment and hard work and hoping that other youngsters will see her as an example of what is possible. -- JW)
posted by WalkSports.com | 7:25 PM
2 Comments:
You only have to talk to Waverly for 5 minutes to know she wants it. She's just like any of us. Some days she loves it, some days she hates it. But she wants to get out there. I've got no issue w/ that!
Here's an update from Yahoo news :
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060502/od_nm/india_boy_dc_2
Seems he's still at it and going for the Guinness Book, while his coach gets into legal battles....
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