101-Year-Old Marathoner Calling It Quits

The “Turbaned Tornado” is calling it quits from the world of competitive running. 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.