601 Babies Crawl Their Way to the Finish Line

A total of 601 babies participated in Japan's three-meter crawling competition that was hailed as the world's largest competition involving babies. Most of the babies crawled both on their hands and knees in order to reach the finish line; the others cried.

The event, which was held on Monday, was organised by Japanese publisher Benesse. It was a one-day event held at a shopping mall in Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture, located southwest of Tokyo. Participants of the said event should be infants between the age of six months and one-year and four months old. Some babies tried their best and wriggled their way towards the finish line. Others, on the other hand, stayed unmoved on the starting line, crying loudly and desperately while waiting for their parents to pick them up.

The mother of baby Saho, a participant in the race, said: "About a month ago she could not crawl well over a long distance, but I am so glad to see her grow."The crawling competition was logged as a new Guinness World Record. The race has outnumbered China's similar race held last year with 451 participating infants.Prizes for the winner included was a headset digital camera. Such a device will allow parents "to take pictures and videos of their children with their hands free."

On the other hand, the event, garnered both positive and negative comments. One of the commenters, kurisupisu, asked: "Isn't this a type of child cruelty......? while another commenter, Garfield1275, said: "Thats [sic] a ugliest way to win a digital camera for any parent to say the least. The wierd [sic] things that the world of peer pressure could put one through. Even the tiny trots are not spared here." Meanwhile, another commenter with the alias SenseNotSoCommon had a more positive outlook on the event by saying: "Benesse starting them early for a life of gaman, gambaru, and self-limiting beliefs. Children this age are highly empathetic. Many will have been freaked out being by so much crying."

Benesse is a magazine that specialises in pregnancy, childbirth and child-rearing. A video of the event was also uploaded on YouTube by AFP News Agency.