Born on 1st April 1911, this is no April Fool’s, this man is the oldest recorded marathon runner ever.  It’s a bit late to wish him a happy birthday, but this year he became a centenarian and he will soon be running his last ever marathon.

At the grand old age of 89, when most of us imagine being very dependant if at all still here on planet Earth, he decided to enter his first marathon in London.  That was back in the year 2000, but Fauja Singh has now completed 6 more and holds the world record for his age category.

So quick has Fauja Singh become, he was the first to sign up for the Edinburgh Marathon, and as the promotional shot above indicates, he appears to be in good shape to complete an eighth race.

The secret of his ability? – lots and lots of tea and ginger curry and as Fauja Singh puts it,

“I am not a learned person in any shape or form. To me, the secret is being happy, doing charity work, staying healthy and being positive.  If someone says I must stop running I ignore them – invariably they’re younger than me. The secret to a long and healthy life is to be stress-free.   If there’s something you can’t change then why worry about it? Be grateful for everything you have, stay away from people who are negative, stay smiling and keep running.”

A training schedule clocking up 10 miles a day should put into perspective anybody’s motivational issues.  Quite an inspiration as autumn has set in, as if summer never visited.