Ed Whitlock

Ed Whitlock (March 6, 1931 – March 13, 2017) was an English-born Canadian long-distance runner, and the first person over 70 years old to run a marathon in less than three hours, with a time of 2:59:10 in 2003. Whitlock, who ran as a teenager and took up the sport again in his forties, first became the oldest person to run a marathon in less than three hours in 2000, at the age of 69, with a time of 2:52:47. He later extended this record, running a time of 2:58:40 at the age of 74. At 73, he set a world record in the marathon for men 70 to 74, running a 2:54:48, his fastest time after turning 70. According to an article in The New York Times, if age-graded, this time would be equivalent to a 20-year-old running 2:03:57 and which would have been the fastest marathon ever run in 2010. For an explanation of age-graded tables, see masters athletics. At the time of his death, Whitlock was known to be the only person over 70 to run a marathon in less than three hours, although Gene Dykes has subsequently done so several times, as has Jo Schoonbroodt. Aged 85, in October 2016, Whitlock became the oldest person to run a marathon in less than four hours — 3:56:34 at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon.