101-Year-Old Marathoner Runs Final Race
Last run at Hong Kong Marathon
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
This past weekend, at 101 years old, the world’s oldest marathon runner ran his final competitive race.
Fauja Singh, known as the “Turbaned Tornado,” finished the Hong Kong Marathon’s 10K in 1 hour, 32 minutes, and 28 seconds. (From CBS: “Singh, a Sikh, wore a saffron turban and sported a flowing white beard.” I love the idea of “sporting” a beard that took, like, 25 years to grow.) He spoke to reporters before the race:
I am feeling a bit of happiness and a bit of sadness mixed together. I am happy that I am retiring at the top of the game but I am sad that the time has come for me to not be part of it. And there will always be times in the future where I will be thinking, “Well, I used to do that.”
While he’s no longer racing, don’t expect Singh to take to the couch. As he told us: “Running keeps me alive. It is like asking, ‘Why not stop breathing?’”
