The Bitcoin community was taken by surprise when Fran Finney, the wife of Hal Finney, one of the leading Satoshi Nakamoto candidates, recently announced plans for an upcoming special event honoring her husband.
"Running Bitcoin" is a half marathon event that will take place between Jan. 1 and Jan. 10 -- with its goal being to get as many people as possible to join in on running or walking a half marathon distance while raising funds for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research via Bitcoin donations. The even was named after Finney's famous tweet that was posted more than a decade ago.
The announcement has already caught the attention of the Bitcoin community, with many users pledging their own sweet support for this cause. "I have never exercised in my life, but for Hal, I will run!" a Twitter user said.
Alex DovbnyaFinney was an American computer scientist, programmer, and cryptocurrency advocate. He is best known for his work with Bitcoin development and for being the first person to ever receive a bitcoin transaction from Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin.
Finney passed away in 2014 after suffering from ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. This is an ultimately terminal neurological ailment that results in a gradual decline of muscle functionality and movement through nerve cell death and deterioration in the brain and spinal cord until eventual respiratory failure. ALS progresses differently depending upon the affected individual, but usually leads to complete paralysis in some form. Finney lived three years after his diagnosis, passing away at age 58.
Arman Shirinyan
Dan Burgin
U.Today Editorial Team
Vladislav Sopov
