At the 2023 Shenzhen Marathon in Guangdong Province, 45-year-old Luo Shujian crossed the finish line pushing a stroller(推车.. His 13-year-old son, Xiaobai, was sitting in it, wearing a helmet(头盔.. Luo and his son finished the half-marathon race in Shenzhen in an hour and fifty-nine minutes. Xiaobai's mother and sister joined in celebrations of the 56th marathon run by the father and son since 2015 via(通过. video call.
Xiaobai was born with a lack of oxygen to his brain and became disabled. It took him two years to learn to walk. Although he can't express feelings in words, he shows them through expressions(表情. and gestures(手势.. After reading about an American marathoner online, Luo decided to take part in marathons with Xiaobai to give his son a full and happy life. For this, Mr. Luo had to find time in the morning to work on his fitness. He gets up at 4 a.m. to jog or cycle before work.
Marathons are still a big challenge for Xiaobai though he's in the stroller. "In many ways, Xiaobai behaves just like a runner. He will be excited when he's in good health." Luo said. Xiaobai likes to watch the world from his stroller while racing. He also claps and smiles to show his joy. The other runners show kindness and positive energy to them and cheer them on as they pass.
Before the 2023 Shenzhen Marathon, their marathon adventure took them to Chengdu to see pandas, to Beijing to climb the Great Wall and to Lanzhou to take photos along the Yellow River.
Luo plans to keeping running with his son to allow Xiaobai to live the best life.
