Ed Whitlock

Ever read a news that was both awesomely inspiring and profoundly demoralizing at the same time? There were two amazing records set this week, one by an 82 year old and another one by a 6 year old.

Ed Whitlock 82 and Keelan Glass, age 6 both set running records this week. Ed Whitlock, a Canadian long-distance runner, now 82, ran the Toronto Waterfront Marathon on Sunday and clocked in at 3:41.58. He was the first oldest person to run a marathon in less than 3 hours at age 69 with a time of 2:52.57. Looking at his splits, he ran at an average pace of 8:27 minutes/mile and that’s amazing. According to this New York Times article, if you age-grade his time, then that’s equivalent to a 20 year old running a marathon in 2:03.57. Whitlock apparently hopes to recover in time for two more races in November, a 15K and a 9-miler.

Photo Credit: Tracy Glass Facebook

While octogenarian’s are breaking marathon records, Keelan Glass, a 6 year old ran the Showdown Half Marathon in Dallas in 2:46.31 with an average pace of 12:47 minutes/mile. According to the Association of Road Racing Statistics, Keelan is the youngest person ever to do it, with the previous record holder being held by a 9 year old. Here’s the kicker. She completed her first 5K when she was 4 years old and her 10K by the age of 5. I supposed having both parents as triathletes helps. Apparently she’s also considering running her first marathon before she turns 10. Now please excuse me while I go take a nap to recover from my last race, the Morgan Hill Marathon.