World’s oldest marathon runner, Fauja Singh, dies after being struck by vehicle in hit-and-run

Fauja Singh, who was believed to be the oldest marathon runner and the first 100-year-old to complete a full marathon, has died after being struck by a vehicle Monday.

Singh was hit while crossing the road in his native village in Beas Pind, near Punjab, India. He was 114 years old.

Indian media reports say Singh died at a local hospital. Police said the vehicle fled the scene, though efforts are being made to identify and find the vehicle.

“It is with the utmost sadness that I can confirm our icon of humanity and powerhouse of positivity Fauja Singh has passed away in India,” Singh’s long-time coach, Harmander Singh, wrote in a social media post.

“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.”

Singh was an amateur runner in his youth and only began to run competitively when he was 89 years-old. He ran several marathons between the years of 2000 and 2013, when he eventually retired.

“I was never a runner,” Singh said in a 2011 interview with OMNI News, “All I used to do was farming so I could feed my kids.”

Singh garnered worldwide attention in 2011, when he made headlines for his competitive running at 100-years-old. He was recorded by the Olympics as the first centenarian and oldest man to complete a full marathon, and in that same year, he completed the Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Nicknamed, “Turbaned Tornado,” Singh was the torchbearer for the London 2012 Olympics.

Brampton Marathon in a statement remembered Singh’s message of health and perseverance.

“Fauja Singh was more than a runner, he was a movement,” the statement read, “His story reminded us and the world that it’s never too late to take a meaningful first step.”

Singh pursued running after his wife and son abruptly died. He was originally from India but later immigrated to England where he said his life took a turn, defining it as a “reincarnation.”

Running didn’t come easily for Singh. In fact, he said his parents used to worry about his ability to walk as a child.

“My parents got me treated and I started walking at the age of five. Even after that, I could not do long walks. It was at the age of 15, when I felt a little strength in my legs,” Singh said in 2011, before setting his record in Toronto.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid his own tribute to Singh, adding he was “extraordinary.”

“He inspired the youth of India on a very important topic of fitness,” Modi wrote to social media, “He was an exceptional athlete with incredible determination.”

Despite his accomplishments, Singh was never inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records because he did not have a birth certificate, and his age could not be verified. India has stated birth certificates were not kept in 1911.