Beto finishes 5K in Iowa after apologizing for his white privilege

Beto O'Rourke has run a 5K race, as he attempts to put his nascent campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination on more solid footing after a rocky start.

O'Rourke competed in the We Run 'Lucky Run' five-kilometer race on Saturday in North Liberty, Iowa, finishing in 22nd place overall with a respectable time of 24:15.

The race in the first primary state allowed O'Rourke, an athletic-looking 46 years old, to project an image of youthful vigor, in unspoken contrast to some of his much older political rivals. 

'We've got to run a campaign, and this is the toughest way to run,' he said after finishing the race, forehead still glistening. 'We are setting the pace... It is extraordinarily energizing.'

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke (center) participates in the Lucky Run 5k race on Saturday in North Liberty, Iowa

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke (center) participates in the Lucky Run 5k race on Saturday in North Liberty, Iowa

The race allowed O'Rourke, an athletic-looking 46 years old, to project an image of youthful vigor, in unspoken contrast to some of his much older political rivals

The race allowed O'Rourke, an athletic-looking 46 years old, to project an image of youthful vigor, in unspoken contrast to some of his much older political rivals

O'Rourke finished the race in 22nd place overall with a respectable time of 24:15

O'Rourke finished the race in 22nd place overall with a respectable time of 24:15

'Getting back to the hotel at 10 or 11 (at night), I come down from all the energy that I have, all the stories I have heard, the people I have met, all the places I have been to for the first time. It's thrilling,' O'Rourke continued.

'That's where I find my energy.'

Under the eye of countless cameras, the candidate - a rower during his student days at New York's Columbia University - then walked over to his rental car, slipped into the driver's seat and headed out. 

On Friday, O'Rourke apologized for a series of gaffes, including his joke that his wife raises their three children practically on her own and and for his troubling teenage fantasy fiction about killing kids that has come back to haunt him.  

Speaking on the podcast Political Party LIVE! in Cedar Rapids, he admitted he was wrong for joking that his wife raised the family only 'sometimes with my help', which had sparked outrage among female politicians and activists.  

O'Rourke receives a medal after finishing the Lucky Run 5k race on Saturday in Iowa

O'Rourke receives a medal after finishing the Lucky Run 5k race on Saturday in Iowa

'We've got to run a campaign, and this is the toughest way to run,' he said after finishing the race, forehead still glistening

'We've got to run a campaign, and this is the

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