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101-year-old, world's oldest marathon runner, taking up running at age 89: "daily exercise will keep you away from all diseases"
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Indian-born British national Singh admitted age was finally catching up with him and he had decided not to compete after the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, five weeks before his 102nd birthday on April 1.
"But I will keep running for at least four hours daily after that," Singh, who lives in Ilford, England, told the Times of India newspaper during a visit to his home state of Punjab.
"Running is my life. I will keep running to inspire the masses."
Singh, dubbed the 'Turbaned Tornado', took up running marathons at the ripe old age of 89 and has been credited with competing in eight 42-kilometre (26-mile) races in London, Toronto and New York.
He finished his fifth London Marathon last year in a time of seven hours and 49 minutes and was honoured by being invited to carry the Olympic torch.
Singh, who says he was born on April 1, 1911, insisted he was not suffering from any illnesses and did not take medicines when he was asked the secret of his amazing physical fitness.
"The reason for my good health is that I exercise daily and follow a proper diet regime," he was quoted as saying. "I take happiness in biggest proportions though my actual diet is very small.
"Nowadays, people are more interested in going to a gym, but I feel that if they exercise regularly on their own they can be physically and mentally strong.
"Daily exercise will keep you away from all diseases."
Fauja Singh is a 101-year-old marathoner who has inspired many other runners to get out and compete on a daily basis.
According to Yahoo Sports, Singh will compete in the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24 and will then hang up his running shoes and retire from the marathon circuit.
Singh wasn’t a lifetime marathon runner, choosing instead to pick up the sport at the ripe old age of 89. Since beginning his quest to run well into his senior citizen years, Singh has traveled the world, running in eight well-known marathons.
The Turbaned Tornado became so well known that he was asked to carry the Olympic Torch for the 2012 London Olympics.
Fauja Singh won’t give up running after he retires, he simply won’t compete in marathons. According to Singh: “I will keep running for at least four hours daily … Running is my life. I will keep running to inspire the masses.”
Singh will turn 102 in April, the perfect age for retirement for a super human 101-year-old marathon runner.
What might be most amazing about this story is that the Turbaned Tornado’s body was able to stand up to the rigors of running marathons. Many people half his age have knee and other issues surface after running in marathons.
If you want to find Fauja Singh as he runs in his last Hong Kong marathon, just look for the guy with the giant beard and turban. He shouldn’t be hard to spot.
*update* May 23, 2013
The Telegraph - Oldest Everest climber 'on top of world': "I never imagined I could make it to the top of Mount Everest at the age of 80," he said. "This is the best feeling of my life." Yuichiro Miura, an 80-year-old Japanese mountaineer, says he is feeling elated after becoming the oldest person in history to reach the top of Mount Everest.
Mr Miura, who has conquered the 8,850 metre peak twice before, when he was aged 70 and 75, reached the summit on Thursday morning.
He then phoned his daughter to tell her that he felt "on top of the world".
"I never imagined I could make it to the top of Mount Everest at the age of 80," he said. "This is the best feeling of my life."
Despite the impressive achievement, his record as the oldest person to summit Everest may not last long, as 81-year-old Min Bahadur Sherchan from Nepal is preparing to scale the peak next week -
*Update January 31, 2014*
102-year-old French cyclist breaks own world record
Age hasn't slowed cyclist Robert Marchand.
The 102-year-old Frenchman broke his own world record in the over-100s category Friday, riding 16.7 miles in one hour, more than 2.5 kilometers better than his previous best time in the race against the clock two years ago.
By way of comparison, the current overall world record for one hour is 30.882 miles set by Czech Ondrej Sosenka in 2005.
Marchand, a retired firefighter and logger, also holds the record for someone over the age of 100 riding 62 miles. He did it in four hours, 17 minutes and 27 seconds in 2012.
Marchand received a standing ovation and was mobbed by dozens of photographers and cameramen at the finish line in France's new National Velodrome, a $100 million complex that officially opened its doors Thursday.
The athlete smiled and raised his arms at the finish, supported by two assistants. "It was very good, but at the end it started to become very hard!" he said.
He said he couldn't have done it without the public's support.
"You have to know there are people who came from 600 kilometers away to see me today! It is incredible. That's all I can say," Marchand said.
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Photos courtesy of inquisitr.com and Jeff J. Mitchell / Getty Images
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Whether you are young, adult, or old or small or big, running is a perfect exercise for everyone. There are huge benefits of running and can be modified to work around your bodily needs and schedule. No matter, whether you make running your primary exercise or adding exercise to your usual workout, There’s always a way to harvest its remunerations.