Fauja Singh, a Sikh from east London finishes as World's oldest marathon runner completing Toronto race at age 100!

by Gursant Singh , Yuba City California USA, Tuesday, October 18, 2011, 02:16 (4790 days ago)
edited by Gursant Singh, Sunday, October 23, 2011, 08:00

Fauja Singh, a Sikh from east London finishes as World's oldest marathon runner completing Toronto race at age 100! Makes you Proud to be a Sikh! Waheguru Waheguru Waheguru
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/oct/17/worlds-oldest-marathon-runner-100#history-link-box

You won't see any mention of Kundalini Yoga by Fauja Singh or his coach! In fact Harmander Singh of Sikhs of England, coach of Fauja Singh, made this statement in a press release about Yogi Bhajan's use of the Golden Temple as a brand name for breakfast cereal,"The Golden Temple should not be branded. Gurdwaras, including The Golden Temple, are places of worship; they are to stay open, and to feed people. Many Sikhs have arrived in the West since 1984, escaping from religious persecution and genocide in India. We feel shame over how Yogi Bhajan conned young people - we Sikhs live by the principles of remembering God, working hard and sharing with others - nowhere is there any promotion of sex tantra and yoga gimmicks in the Sikh scriptures. Rather, for Sikh's perhaps the most sinful act imaginable is to fleece innocents in the name of the Divine."
Yogi Bhajan was obese and in ill health for years before his death. He taught his profitable yoga courses while seated and never even practiced his own Kundalini on himself. He lived in luxury, waited on by the very followers who are now suing each other in endless lawsuits.
Fauja Singh is 100 years old and doubtless never paid to attend one of Yogi Bhajan's tantric or kundalini yoga shows. Fauja Singh likely doesn't eat any of Yogi Bhajan's trademarked Golden Temple "health foods" like Peace Cereals or drink Yogi Tea. Fauja Singh is a living model of fitness -- a far cry from the fat, fake Yogi Bhajan.
Coach Harmander Singh has it right. Yogi Bhajan's healthy, happy,holy cult was a gimmick, through and through!

World's oldest marathon runner Fauja Singh, 100, celebrates after completing the full distance in Toronto. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
It took him more than eight hours to cross the finish line in 3,850th place, but those unimpressive figures earn Fauja Singh a remarkable record – as the world's oldest marathon runner.

The Indian-born 100-year-old from Ilford, east London, completed the full distance in Toronto more than six hours after the winner, as workers were dismantling the barricades.

His total time of 8.25.18 should make him the Guinness World Record holder once all documentation is verified.

Born in the Punjab on 1 April 1911, Singh was a farmer when he first developed a love for running, but only took it up again 11 years ago after moving to live with family in the UK following the deaths of his wife and son. He ran his first marathon aged 89, and has since run seven more.

The holder of several records for fastest nonagenarian, he also claimed eight centenarian distance records from 100 metres through to 5,000 metres during Sunday's Toronto waterfront marathon. Some had never been attempted by someone that old before.

Though Singh found he "hit the wall" at 22 miles he soldiered on for another two hours, and even finished ahead of five other competitors.

His coach, and translator Harmander Singh, said: "Just before we came around the final corner, he said that 'achieving this will be like getting married again'. He's absolutely overjoyed, he's achieved his lifelong wish."

Singh, who attributes his success to ginger curry, cups of tea and "being happy", has long been acclaimed as the "Turbaned Tornado" – the title of his biography, published last year, which he unfortunately has not been able to read because he is illiterate.

In 2004 his running prowess saw him replace England footballer David Beckham, and champion boxer Muhammad Ali as poster boy for Adidas's "Impossible is nothing" advertising campaign.

He now hopes his next project will be participating in the torch relay for the 2012 London Games