Goodmayes marathon runner Fauja Singh honoured in children’s book
The legendary marathon runner Fauja Singh is the subject of a new children's book. Picture: Penguin Random House - Credit: Archant
Centenarian marathon runner Fauja Singh MBE has been celebrated in a children’s book encouraging youngsters to go the distance.
Former marathon runner Fauja Singh (right), with his running coach Harmander Singh. Picture: Harmander Singh - Credit: Archant
American writer Simran Jeet Singh paired up with illustrator Baljinder Kaur on the book, Fauja Singh Keeps Going, which will be released on August 25 by Penguin Random House.
The book tells the story of Fauja, who lives in Goodmayes and who took up running seriously when he was 89. He went on to become the first 100-year-old to complete a marathon.
Simran said growing up he dreamt of seeing someone who looked like him as a character in a book because he felt Sikhs were almost exclusively portrayed as people to be afraid of.
He said: “Fauja Singh’s life is an inspiring story of perseverance that builds inclusion by challenging our assumptions around racism, ageism, ableism, and helping us to reimagine what our heroes can look like.
The marathon runner is a legendary figure in the Sikh and running communities. Picture: Emdad Rahman - Credit: Archant
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“I hope it helps humanize our community.”
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