Dad and disabled son ‘run’ marathon 3 years in a row and inspire others with their bond

Facebook | Mikael Nordmark

A father took his disabled son along on a marathon run back in 2014. It was the first race the duo would run together, but it wouldn’t be the last. Their participation has shown just how much a father can bond with a child with such limits.

Family time is important, no matter what. In this life, we only get one flesh and blood family, and it’s important to always remind yourself of that and cherish the time you have together because you never know when those days will come to an end.

Mikael Nordmark’s now 9-year-old son, Hugo, who was born with lissencephaly, a rare brain disorder that causes him to suffer from impaired vision, epilepsy, and cerebral palsy. Due to the disorder, Hugo could not walk or sit up by himself and has to be fed partly through a tube to his stomach.

To make matters even worse, the unlucky children that get diagnosed with lissencephaly have an average lifespan of around ten-years-old. Nordmark understands that the little bit of time that they have left together is precious, and despite having all the right intentions and attitude, the father and son still found it difficult to find fun activities that piqued both of their interest, but that didn’t stop Nordmark. The two continued looking for that one thing, that one hobby, they could enjoy together, as a family. Sadly, Hugo’s limited mobility posed a major a challenge, Newsner reported.

But then, Nordmark decided to try something a little different. In the summer of 2014, Nordmark took part in a 26-mile race, bringing Hugo along. They completed the race together, with Nordmark running while pushing Hugo in a stroller. They ran together again for the next two years, and again in 2017 on June 4 at the Stockholm, Sweden marathon.

So, how long did they take to complete the race?

“We ran 4:29 last year and the year before, 5:09. So it feels like a good goal,” Nordmark said. The goal goal he set for himself and his son for 2017 was four hours, and they finished the race just 10 minutes over that.

Nordmark isn’t carrying his son along with him during the run because he wants to break records, enjoys the attention, want was fame or recognition. No, this super father has a mission in mind when he steps out onto the track: “It’s about showing other parents of children with disabilities that you can do a lot more than you think. And we really have achieved something. We arranged a private race last year and nearly 20 teams like Hugo and I showed up. They had been inspired by us,” he said.

By competing together, Nordmark found something they could both take part in, and something that they both finally enjoyed.

“It’s always been a challenge for us to find things to do together, in that Hugo has such limited mobility,“ said Nordmark. ”When we found this way to do something together as father and son, it became our thing. It’s been huge for us and we feel really strong when we’re out running.”

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