Ian_A said:zee said:Amazing photos in link. Zee
What a senior moment
Canuck marathon man, 74, smokes his rival, 71
BRIAN BETHUNE
For photos of Ed Whitlock's run
http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/sports/article.jsp?content=20050425_104285_104285
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:
More than 50 minutes after Jimmy Muindi sweeps smoothly to victory
in
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:the Rotterdam Marathon, in an impressive time of 2:07:50, the cold
and
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:rain of an April day by the North Sea have scattered his welcoming
party. The city's smiling mayor, Burgemeester Ivo Opstelten, last
seen
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:presenting flowers to the top three finishers -- Kenyans to a man
-- is
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:nowhere to be seen. Nor are the jostling photographers who fought
to
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:capture the final sprint. Now the halt, the lame, the crumpled over
with dry heaves or diarrhea, and the just plain also-ran, stagger
across the finish line. Then, as the clock ticks ominously closer
to
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:three hours -- the cut-off point for serious marathoners -- Ed
Whitlock
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:hoves into view.
At 2:58:40, Canada's unlikeliest star athlete -- all five feet,
seven
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:inches and 112 lb. of him -- crosses the line, sporting his ancient
running shoes, shock of white hair and a huge grin. Whitlock, 74,
from
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:the Toronto suburb of Milton, is the only man over 70 ever to have
broken the three-hour mark. Now he's done it again, for the third
time,
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:in the most prestigious race he's ever run. What's more, he's
crushed
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:his only serious rival for the over-70 crown, Rotterdam hometown
hero
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Joop Ruter, 71, who arrives 14 minutes later. Back comes
Burgemeester
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Opstelten, with a fresh bunch of flowers, along with an entire
Dutch TV
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:crew and several photographers.
Whitlock is a star entry in one of the world's Top 10 marathons --
in
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:another first for over-70 runners, organizers paid his way to
Rotterdam
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:and reserved an elite starting position for him ahead of the 11,000
ordinary racers. When he finishes, the PA system goes back into
operation, trumpeting Whitlock's age and time. "I'm still
recovering --
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:it was a tough last k," a disconcertingly relaxed Whitlock tells
the
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:media. "I left Joop after about four kilometres. Then I spent much
of
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:the race in a large crowd, trying to hide from the wind; I'm a bit
of a
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:parasite that way. I was aiming for 2:57, so I lost a minute
somewhere," he concludes, a flicker of displeasure momentarily
dimming
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:his smile. "But a good result anyway."
And not one Whitlock could ever have predicted when he emigrated to
Canada from his native England in 1952, part of an almost forgotten
trickle of British draft dodgers who wanted to avoid a two-year
National Service stint. He was a good, but not world-class,
middle-distance runner in the era of Roger Bannister's Miracle
Mile.
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Becoming a busy mining engineer and father of two sons (both now
runners), he abandoned competition until his 40s. Twenty years
later he
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:moved into long distances.
Whitlock takes no supplements or vitamins, refuses to stretch
before
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:races, trains by running in circles around a local cemetery after a
breakfast of tea and bread, and hasn't had a regular physical in 30
years. So that late start in marathon life -- which presumably has
limited the wear and tear on his body -- is observers' best
explanation
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:for his success. Whitlock's having none of it, though. "I've been a
serious runner my whole life." He will allow for the luck of good
genes
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:-- his mother died at 91, and an uncle recently passed away at 108.
The
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:real answer likely has more to do with his mind. Hours after the
marathon, Whitlock declares, "It would have been a disgrace if I
had
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:lost to Joop. I'm the one with the record time, he's the one who
should
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:be intimidated by it. Obviously I have a competitive streak, but
I'd
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:have been very upset if I felt people had any reason to think I
hadn't
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:run well."
As for the future, there's the anticipated rematch with Ruter at
September's Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Shrugging off age and
possible
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:injury, Whitlock's sure it will take place. "Joop said he'd come,
and
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:so did I. Besides, I said I'd take him to Niagara Falls.
Another great senior moment from down under, six day ultra marathon.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/03/1067708126175.html?oneclick=true
Quoted message said:Ian
Can't get it without handing over my life. Can you click and copy it
for us? Whitlock's amazing no? Does he have the perfect runner's
physique or what... I loved the picture taken from above him. Look at
the perfect line of body and legs. Perfect throw on his forward leg.
Zee