CHANDIGARH: The 114-year-old Fauja Singh, the world’s oldest marathoner, was cremated today with state honours at his native village Beas, near Jalandhar.
The Punjab Government has decided to rename the school in his village after him, besides installing his statues at the village stadium and the Sports College in Jalandhar.
Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and leaders from across political parties attended his cremation, along with scores of rural residents. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also sent words of praise for Singh.
Singh’s son, Harvinder Singh, lit the funeral pyre, and the Punjab Police gave a gun salute. The 114-year-old was allegedly hit by an SUV driven by Canada-based Amritpal Singh Dhillon on July 14 while crossing the Jalandhar–Pathankot highway.
Earlier, Singh’s body was kept in a glass casket at his residence in the village, with his photograph beside it, where people paid their tributes. Around noon, it was carried to the cremation ground located outside the village.
The family expressed pride in the achievements of their centenarian loved one, for whom they also received a condolence letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “That he (Fauja Singh) took up long-distance running at a very advanced age speaks volumes of not only his physical fitness, but more importantly, his mental strength and resilience,” read the letter.
Punjab Governor Kataria, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Cabinet Minister Mohinder Bhagat, Congress MLAs Pargat Singh, Rana Gurjeet Singh, Sukhwinder Singh Kotli, Hardev Singh Ladi Sherowalia, senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader Dr Daljit Singh Cheema, Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal, and Jalandhar Range DIG Naveen Singla placed wreaths at the pyre.
Kataria recalled how Fauja Singh walked with him during a Nasha Mukt Yatra, an anti-drug campaign, last year. He said that after walking for one kilometre, he asked him to stop, but to his surprise, Fauja Singh insisted that they continue walking.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, who laid a wreath on Singh’s body, expressed profound grief and sorrow over the demise of the international marathoner.
He said that the sports fraternity would forever remain indebted to the late Singh for his enormous contribution to taking athletics to new heights by defying his age on the international stage.
Mann said that the void created by the death of this legendary athlete is difficult to fill in the near future. Recognising his immense contribution, the state government will rename the school in his village after him, besides installing his statues at the village stadium and the Sports College in Jalandhar.
Singh’s career as a marathon runner began when he was 89. He went on to become a global icon, gaining the nickname “Turbaned Tornado” for his endurance and athleticism.