Ed Whitlock facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ed Whitlock

At the Milton Half-Marathon 2012
Personal information
Birth name	Edward Whitlock
Nationality	British & Canadian
Born	(1931-03-06)March 6, 1931 London, England
Died	March 13, 2017(2017-03-13) (aged 86) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Engineer, Runner
Years active	1948–2017
Height	5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Weight	112 lb (51 kg)
Spouse(s)	Brenda
Sport
Sport	Track and Field
Event(s)	800 m, 1500 m, 3000 m, 5000 m, 10,000 m, Half marathon, Marathon
University team	University of London
Club	Ranelagh Harriers

Ed Whitlock (born March 6, 1931 – died March 13, 2017) was an amazing long-distance runner from England who later became a Canadian citizen. He was the very first person over 70 years old to run a full marathon in less than three hours! He achieved this incredible feat in 2003, finishing in 2 hours, 59 minutes, and 10 seconds.

Ed Whitlock started running as a teenager. He then took a break and began running seriously again in his forties. At age 69, in the year 2000, he became the oldest person to run a marathon in under three hours, with a time of 2:52:47. He kept breaking his own records! When he was 74, he ran a marathon in 2:58:40. At 73, he set a world record for men aged 70 to 74, running 2:54:48. This was his fastest marathon time after turning 70. Experts said this time was so good, it was like a 20-year-old running an incredibly fast marathon. He was known as the only person over 70 to run a marathon in under three hours for a long time. Later, other runners like Gene Dykes and Jo Schoonbroodt also achieved this. When he was 85, Ed became the oldest person to run a marathon in less than four hours. He finished the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in October 2016 in 3 hours, 56 minutes, and 34 seconds.

Early Life and Running Start

Ed Whitlock was born in a part of London, England. After finishing his engineering studies at Imperial College, he moved to Canada to work as an engineer. He lived in Milton, Ontario.

When he was in school and university in England, Ed was a serious young runner. He mostly ran cross country races, which are races over natural terrain. He also competed in track and road relays. He won important cross country races in 1948 and 1949. He was also the champion for the University of London in cross country and a 3-mile track race. After moving to Canada, he stopped running for a while.

Returning to the Race Track

Ed Whitlock didn't start running again until he was 41 years old. He first focused on middle-distance races. After a few years, he achieved impressive times. He ran 800 metres in 1 minute, 59.9 seconds, and 1500 metres in 4 minutes, 2.5 seconds.

He started running marathons by accident! His youngest son, who loved running, decided he wanted to run a marathon at just 14 years old. Ed tried to talk him out of it, but in the end, he reluctantly ran the race with him. Even though he wasn't training for marathons, he ran an amazing time of 2:31:23 when he was 48.

After he retired in his sixties, Ed began to focus on road racing. His big goal was to become the first man over 70 to run a marathon in less than three hours. He tried when he was 70, but an injury stopped him. Two years later, in 2003, at age 72, he finally did it, finishing in 2:59:10. The next year, he improved his record to 2:54:49. In 2005, at age 74, he ran 2:58:40, making him the oldest man to run under three hours for a marathon.

In 2006, he set a world record for his age group (75 to 79) with a time of 3:08:35 at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon. In 2007, he lowered that record even more to 3:04:54 at the Rotterdam Marathon.

On September 26, 2010, Ed ran the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon in 1 hour, 34 minutes, and 23.4 seconds.

After turning 80, Ed continued to break records! He improved the marathon world record for his age group (80+) by nearly 15 minutes. He ran 3:25:43 at the 2011 Rotterdam Marathon. Then, he broke his own record again at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in October 2011, finishing in 3:15:54.

At age 81, in September 2012, Ed broke the Canadian and unofficial world half-marathon record in his hometown race, the Milton Half-Marathon, running 1:38:59. In 2013, he lowered that record to 1:38:11 on the same course.

Ed Whitlock also set many world age group records on the track. By 2012, he held 15 world records for different distances (from 1500 metres to 10,000 metres) and for various age groups (65+, 70+, 75+, 80+, and 85+). He also held three age group marathon records (70+, 75+, and 80+).

On October 16, 2016, at 85 years old, Ed ran the Toronto Marathon in 3:56:38, setting another new world record.

Awards and Recognition

In 2016, Ed Whitlock was honored by being included in the Milton Sports Hall of Fame. He was one of the first people to be inducted.

The town of Milton also named a street after him, which is located near Highway 25. This shows how much he was admired in his community.

His Legacy

Ed Whitlock passed away on March 13, 2017, just one week after his 86th birthday. He died from prostate cancer in Toronto.

Ed Whitlock was an inspiration to many. He showed that age is just a number when it comes to achieving amazing things. His dedication and incredible achievements in running will always be remembered.

World Records by Age Group

Ed Whitlock, who lived in Milton, Ontario, held 36 world records for different age groups in both road and track running.

Outdoor – Track Records

† 2016 times not (yet?) officially confirmed as world records

* record later broken by Ron Robertson from New Zealand

Indoor – Track Records

* Records later broken by other athletes

Outdoor – Road Records

These are records for races run on roads.

More Road Records by Age Group

Besides the records recognized by World Masters Athletics, the Association of Road Race Statisticians (ARRS) also tracks many age group road records. Here are some of Ed Whitlock's records recognized by ARRS.

Road World Records

See also

• List of world records in masters athletics