Latest news with #FaujaSinghBirthdayChallenge
Qatar Tribune
4 hours ago
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
World's ‘oldest' marathon runner Fauja Singh dies in road accident aged 114
PA Media/dpa London British marathon runner Fauja Singh has died in a road accident in Punjab, India, aged 114. The athlete - believed to be the oldest runner to complete a marathon - was hit by a car and suffered fatal injuries while trying to cross a road in his birth village Beas Pind, near Jalandhar in Punjab, on Monday, according to reports in India. His London-based running club and charity, Sikhs In The City, confirmed his death and said their upcoming events in Ilford, east London, will be a celebration of his life and achievements. Singh - who lived in Ilford from 1992 - made his name by beating a number of records for marathon times in multiple age brackets. The centenarian became an inspiration for countless athletes by running marathons past the age of 100. A profile on the Olympics website said Singh was born in Punjab, then under British rule, on April 1 1911 and was the youngest of four children in a farming family. He was said to have suffered from thin and weak legs, and was unable to walk until he was five years old. He moved to England and settled in east London with his son after the death of his wife Gian Kaur in Jalandhar. It was not until 2000, aged 89, that he took up running, quickly rising to fame by completing his maiden marathon in London in six hours and 54 minutes. This time knocked 58 minutes off the previous world's best in the 90-plus age bracket. Singh ran numerous marathons, completing the 2003 Toronto Waterfront Marathon in five hours and 40 minutes, his personal best. On October 16 2011, in Toronto, the runner is thought to have become the first centenarian to run a marathon. Guinness World Records described it as an 'inspirational achievement' but said it was unable to recognise the feat without the necessary proof of his date of birth. Singh did not have a birth certificate, as official birth records were not kept in India in 1911, although the date of birth on his passport was April 1 1911, and he received a personal letter from Queen Elizabeth II on his 100th birthday. He was a torchbearer for the London 2012 Olympics and retired at the age of 101. Harmander Singh, Fauja Singh's coach at Sikhs In The City, confirmed his death in a statement posted to the running club. 'Dearest runners. It is with great sadness that we can confirm our icon of humanity and powerhouse of positivity Fauja Singh has passed away in India. Aged 114 years old. 'He succumbed to injuries caused by a vehicle accident while crossing the road close to his home. 'His running club and charity Sikhs In The City will be devoting all of its events until the Fauja Singh Birthday Challenge on Sunday March 29 2026 to celebrate his life of success and achievements. 'We will be doubling the efforts to raise funds to building the Fauja Singh Clubhouse on the route in Ilford where he used to train. 'In lieu of flowers please donate to his Clubhouse Appeal so we can carry on his legacy to encourage the world to keep fit and stay positive.' Preet Kaur Gill MP said on X: 'Saddened to hear about the passing of Fauja Singh. 'I had the honour of meeting him. A truly inspiring man. His discipline, simple living, and deep humility left a lasting mark on me. 'A reminder that age is just a number, but attitude is everything. Rest in power, legend.'
Global News
8 hours ago
- Global News
World's oldest marathon runner, who competed in Surrey, hit and killed in India
An Indian man known as the oldest person to complete a full marathon has died after being struck by a vehicle. Fauja Singh came to Surrey in 2012, where he has relatives, and ran a five-kilometre race. He would have been 101 years old at the time. Singh said he was born in 1911, making him 114 at the time of his death. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy He only began running at age 89 and completed the Toronto Waterfront Marathon when he was 100 years old. Singh was not running when he was killed. He was walking on a road near his hometown in northwestern India. Global News had spoken to Singh in Surrey, who said he ran and walked five hours a day. He finished the Surrey five-kilometre race in only 40 minutes. Story continues below advertisement Harmander Singh, Singh's running coach in the U.K.-based Sikhs in the City, posted on Facebook that 'His running club and charity Sikhs In The City will be devoting all of its events until the Fauja Singh Birthday Challenge on Sunday 29 March 2026 to celebrate his life of success and achievements. 'We will be doubling the efforts to raise funds to build the Fauja Singh Clubhouse on the route in Ilford where he used to train.'
Evening Standard
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
Who was Fauja Singh? World's oldest marathon runner dies in road accident
"It is with great sadness that we can confirm our icon of humanity and powerhouse of positivity Fauja Singh has passed away in India,' it reads. "His running club and charity Sikhs In The City will be devoting all of its events until the Fauja Singh Birthday Challenge on Sunday 29 March 2026 to celebrate his life of success and achievements.
Extra.ie
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Extra.ie
World's oldest marathon runner killed crossing the road
A man who was known worldwide for being the oldest man still running marathons has been killed while crossing the road in his native India. Fauja Singh, who was 114 years old, was believed to be the world's oldest marathon runner, but he died on Monday afternoon while crossing the road in the village where he was born, a place called Beas Pind, in India. Mr Singh, who lived in London, was part of a running club called 'Sikhs In The City' who have said all of their events up until the 'Fauja Singh Birthday Challenge' next March will be devoted to his name to celebrate his life of success and achievements. Fauja Singh in 2011. Pic: JeffThe Club is also making plans to build a clubhouse in his name on the running route in Ilford, where he used to train. The 114-year-old who was nicknamed the 'Turbaned Tornado', ran a full marathon in Toronto, Canada, at the age of 100 and since then has run marathons in New York, and Mumbai, but his best time was recorded in Toronto in 2003, where he completed the marathon in five hours and 40 minutes. The former farmer, who was born in 1911, only took up running in 1994, two years after moving to the UK, in an attempt to deal with the grief of losing one of his sons, but started to take running more seriously in 2000, completing the London Marathon in six hours and 54 minutes. Fauja Singh in 2011. Pic: JeffHe knocked 58 minutes off the previous world's best in the '90-plus' age bracket in the process. In 2011, his 100th year, Fauja achieved eight world age-group records in a single day at the special Ontario Masters Association Fauja Singh Invitational Meet, at Birchmount Stadium in Toronto, Canada. Three days later, he became the first centenarian to finish a marathon, completing the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in eight hours, 11 minutes and six seconds. Fauja Singh in 2016. Pic: Keshav Singh/Hindustan Times via Getty Images However, the Guinness Book of World Records did not recognise his amazing achievements because he was unable to produce his birth certificate to prove his age, as official birth records were not kept when he was born in India in 1911 But in 2012, he was chosen as a torchbearer for the Olympic Games, which were held in London.
Saudi Gazette
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Saudi Gazette
World's 'oldest' marathon runner dies at 114 in hit-and-run
DELHI — Fauja Singh, a British-Indian man believed to be the world's oldest marathon runner, has died after being hit by a car in India at the age of 114. Police say Singh was crossing a road in the village where he was born in Punjab when an unidentified vehicle hit him. Locals took him to hospital, where he died. Singh, a global icon, set records by running marathons across multiple age categories, including when he was over 100. He began running at 89 and ran nine full marathons between 2000 and 2013, when he retired. His running club and charity, Sikhs In The City, said its upcoming events in Ilford, east London, where he had lived since 1992, would be a celebration of his life and achievements. The hit and run happened on Monday as the centenarian was walking in his birth village, Beas Pind, near Jalandhar. "A search is under way, and the accused will be caught soon," said Harvinder Singh, a top district police news of the death broke, tributes poured Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him an "exceptional athlete with incredible determination".Harmander Singh, Fauja Singh's coach at Sikhs In The City, confirmed his death in a statement posted to the running statement said: "It is with great sadness that we can confirm our icon of humanity and powerhouse of positivity Fauja Singh has passed away in India."His running club and charity Sikhs In The City will be devoting all of its events until the Fauja Singh Birthday Challenge on Sunday 29 March 2026 to celebrate his life of success and achievements."We will be doubling the efforts to raise funds to building the Fauja Singh Clubhouse on the route in Ilford where he used to train."When the BBC met Singh in June in Beas Pind, he was agile and active, walking several miles every day."I still go for walks around the village to keep my legs strong. A person has to take care of his own body," he said.A torchbearer for the 2012 London Olympics, Singh clocked several milestones during his running career, including reportedly becoming the first centenarian to complete a full marathon in 2011 in his claim of being the world's oldest marathon runner was not recognised by Guinness World Records as he could not show a birth certificate from 1911. The BBC reported at the time that Singh's British passport showed his date of birth as being 1 April 1911, and that he had a letter from the Queen congratulating him on his 100th trainer, Harmander Singh, said that birth certificates were not made in India at the time Singh was World Records officials said they would have loved "to give him the record", but that they could only "accept official birth documents created in the year of the birth".As a young boy growing up in Punjab, Singh was teased by people in his village as his legs were weak and he could not walk properly until the age of five."But the same boy, once mocked for his weakness, went on to make history," he told BBC Punjabi in he turned 40, Singh, a farmer, had lived through the turbulence of both the World Wars and experienced the trauma of Partition."In my youth, I didn't even know the word 'marathon' existed," Singh told BBC Punjabi. "I never went to school, nor was I involved in any kind of sports. I was a farmer and spent most of my life in the fields."He first took to running to cope with the death of his wife Gian Kaur in the early 1990s, he moved to London to live with his eldest son Sukhjinder. But during a visit to India, he witnessed his younger son Kuldeep's death in an accident which left him by grief, Singh would spend hours sitting near the spot where his son had been cremated. Concerned villagers advised his family to take him back to the in Ilford in London, during one of his visits to the gurdwara, Singh met a group of elderly men who would go on runs together. He also met Harmander Singh, who would go on to become his coach."Had I not met Harmander Singh, I wouldn't have got into marathon running," he said in made his debut at the London Marathon in 2000, a month shy of turning 89. He participated through a Golden Bond entry - a system where charities pre-purchase a fixed number of spots for a fee. He chose to run for BLISS, a charity that supports premature infants. His tagline: "Oldest running for the youngest! May they live as long as him."Singh says that before the run, he was told by event officials that he could only wear a patka (headgear worn by many Sikh boys and men) and not a turban."I refused to run without my turban. Eventually, the organisers allowed me to run with it, and for me, that's my biggest achievement," he finished the race in six hours and 54 minutes, marking the beginning of a remarkable his third successive appearance at the London marathon, he had shaved off nine minutes from his previous 2003, at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, he bettered his timing by an astonishing one hour and five minutes, completing the race in five hours and 40 minutes."I don't remember my timings; it is my coach, Harmander Singh, who keeps the record of all my timings. But whatever I have achieved is all because of his training, and I sincerely followed his schedule," Singh said in June."In London, he used to make me run uphill, and because of that, I kept on improving," he added. "Almost after every training session in London, I used to go to the gurdwara, where my diet was taken care of. Everyone there motivated me to run long distances."Singh shot to international fame in 2003 when Adidas signed him for their Nothing Is Impossible advertising campaign which also featured legends such as Muhammad 2005, he was invited by the then Prime Minister of Pakistan to participate in the inaugural Lahore Marathon. A year later, in 2006, he received a special invitation from Queen Elizabeth II to visit Buckingham the many mementos and certificates displayed at Singh's home in Punjab is a framed photograph of him with the continued to compete in marathons well into his 100s and earned the nickname "Turbaned Tornado". Most of his earnings from endorsements went directly to charitable foundations."I was the same Fauja Singh before I entered the world of running - but running gave my life a mission and brought me global recognition," he 2013, he participated in his last long-distance competitive race in Hong Kong, completing a 10km run in one hour, 32 minutes and 28 credited his health and longevity to a simple lifestyle and disciplined diet."Eating less, running more, and staying happy - that is the secret behind my longevity. This is my message to everyone," he said in his final years, Singh divided his time between India, where his younger son lives, and the the BBC met him in June, he was hoping to visit London again soon to meet his family and MP Preet Kaur Gill shared a photo of herself with him on X, writing: "A truly inspiring man. His discipline, simple living, and deep humility left a lasting mark on me."Jas Athwal MP said Singh "inspired millions across the world". He wrote on X: "His spirit and legacy of resilience will run on forever." — BBC
