It’s not a very good photo, but this particular police officer was not posing for photos. He was running a marathon. In full uniform. Including body armor.
He is officer Israel Deutsch of the Hobart-Lawrence (Wisconsin) Police Department, and he wore his uniform and carried all his standard gear in the marathon to raise money and awareness for the families of police officers killed in the line of duty.
“It's basically about honoring and the memory of law enforcement killed so it doesn't matter how long it takes me. I'm not sure how long it's going to take me, but that's all it's about,” Deutsch was quoted as saying.
As it turned out, it took him 4 hours and 24 minutes to complete the 26.2-mile distance.
In case you the reader are not yourself in law enforcement, wearing the full uniform, gear, and body armor adds more than 12 pounds of weight, not to mention the added restrictions on movement and cooling as compared to a runner’s standard attire.
Officer Deutsch may have completed the marathon but he’s not done yet. He says he'll continue to honor fallen law enforcement officers when he enters a September Iron Man event in Madison.
