Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Babies Race for Glory in 'Diaper Derby'

 MIDTOWN — Parents cheered and jingled keys as bewildered infants scooted, crawled, and wiggled toward glory — or sat in place and wailed — at the eighth annual  Diaper Derby  in Midtown on Friday.  The Diaper Derby, held at the New York Hilton Midtown at Sixth Avenue and West 53rd Street by the  NYC Triathlon , gave parents the chance to get their tiny children started early in competitive sports in the runup to Sunday’s grown-up race.
Diaper Derby 2016
View Full Caption

Parents cheered and jingled keys as bewildered infants scooted, crawled, and wiggled toward glory — or sat in place and wailed — at the eighth annual Diaper Derby in Midtown on Friday.

The Diaper Derby, held at the New York Hilton Midtown at Sixth Avenue and West 53rd Street by the NYC Triathlon, gave parents the chance to get their children started early in competitive sports in the runup to Sunday’s race for grown-ups.

In total 29 babies raced, and while some of them were able to grasp the simple terms of the contest, others appeared glued to the starting line, dazed or moved to tears by the dozens of screaming adults and cameras surrounding them.

The infants raced in heats of six, with the winners of each heat eventually facing off in a championship round for the grand prize of a $100 Gerber gift certificate.

But only one baby could be crowned winner, and the glory went to Riley Lau, a spiky-haired Long Island City resident who turned 1 on Friday. According to Lau’s mom, Hailey Choi, her speedy child practiced in their living room, chasing the family dog around.

But according to Riley’s dad, Fai Lau, there was one secret to the wee babe’s success on the mat.

“We just withheld his mother’s love,” Lau joked.

DNAinfo was on the scene on Friday, and captured the highs and lows of this truly momentous occasion.