SAD NEWS: World’s oldest marathon runner, Fauja Singh, dies at 114 after being hit by a car
After being struck by a car, Fauja Singh, an Indian-born runner known as the Turbaned Torpedo and thought to be the oldest marathon runner in the world, passed away. He was 114 years old.
According to Indian local media, Singh was crossing the street in his hometown hamlet close to Jalandhar in Punjab on Monday when he was involved in a hit-and-run accident that left him with serious brain injuries. After being brought to the hospital, he passed away. Sikhs In The City, his charity and running club in London, confirmed his passing.
Singh was praised by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said that Singh was “extraordinary because of his unique persona and the manner in which he inspired the youth of India on a very important topic of fitness.”
When Singh ran a complete marathon in Toronto in 2011 at the age of 100, he became the oldest man to do it. Because he lacked a birth certificate to verify his age, Guinness World Records could not acknowledge his achievement. Singh was born on April 1, 1911, according to his British passport, but according to a letter from Indian government officials, 1911 birth records were not maintained.
After his wife and son passed away in India in quick succession, Singh turned to running at the age of 89 as a means of overcoming depression and became a torchbearer at the 2012 London Olympics. His son’s death in 1994 was very painful for him due to its graphic character.
During a storm, Singh and his son Kuldip were inspecting their fields when Kuldip was beheaded in front of his father by a piece of wind-blown corrugated metal.
At the age of 89 in 2000 he ran the London Marathon, his first, and went on to do eight more. His best time was 5 hours and 40 minutes at the 2003 Toronto Marathon.
“From a tragedy has come a lot of success and happiness,” Singh said.
Singh ran his last competitive race in 2013 at the age of 101, finishing the Hong Kong Marathon’s 10-kilometer (6.25-mile) race in 1 hour, 32 minutes, 28 seconds.
Following his retirement from racing, he said he hoped “people will remember me and not forget me.” He also wanted people to continue to invite him to events “rather than forget me altogether just because I don’t run anymore.”
“He was an exceptional athlete with incredible determination,” Modi said. “Pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family and countless admirers around the world.”
