Clad in all-white apparel and a matching white turban, the
sprightly, 101 years old Fauja Singh carried the torch of London Olympic
accompanied by hundreds of admirers, including Sikhs with yellow T-shirts
bearing Singh's image, who hailed him every moment of the distance he
travelled.
Born in Punjab in 1911, Fauja Singh came to the United
Kingdom to stay with his son Sukhjinder Singh in 1992. He began running at the age of 86 to
keep himself occupied and ran his first marathon at the age of 89. Fauja Singh
has since completed nine marathons - six in London, two in Toronto, where he
set eight track records, and one in New York.
Hundreds of Sikhs organised a 'langar' at 16 points along
the torch relay route to celebrate Fauja Singh's efforts.
United Sikhs, the charity organisation that organised the
'langar', distributed thousands of 'roti rolls' along the torch relay route. The
'langar' was held to "celebrate the wonderful achievements of this
under-spoken treasure of the Sikh community", organisers said.
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