The world's oldest marathon runner, Fauja Singh, who was still an active participant in marathons, has passed away at the age of 114 due to a hit-and-run incident.
Born in rural India in 1911, Singh moved to London later in his life and was usually referred to by his nickname "Turbaned Tornado," which he got after he took up marathon running in his late 80s. He went on to complete nine of the 26.2-mile races.
He was considered the world's oldest marathon runner, though he never secured a Guinness World Record because he did not have a birth certificate.
According to Indian police, an unknown vehicle hit Singh when he was walking on a road near his native village of Beas, in the northwestern Indian state of Punjab.
Jalandhar Rural Senior Superintendent of Police Harvinder Singh Virk shared that the runner was sent to the Srimann Hospital in the Jalandhar district, where he lost his life due to injuries sustained to his head and ribs.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi led nationwide tributes, calling Singh "an exceptional athlete with incredible determination."
Singh only started running marathons when he was 89, after he moved to England following the death of his wife and son.
In an interview when he was 102, Singh expressed his adoration for his hobby, noting, "Running showed me kindness and brought me back to life by making me forget all my traumas and sorrows."
His last race was in Hong Kong, a 10-kilometre route, in 2013, a year after he carried the torch for the 2012 London Olympics.
Despite not making it into the Guinness World Records, he did manage to receive a letter from Britain's Queen Elizabeth congratulating him on his 100th birthday.
