Fauja Singh, the world’s only 101-year-old marathoner, has said he’ll hang up his sneakers next month. At this point, some men might start organizing their ribbons and trophies, or writing notes to supporters, or staring out over a brightly lit city from a high balcony. Reflecting. Or, like Singh, they might use that last month to run a victory lap on the world’s stage.

 

In recent weeks, Singh has visited his old village in the Punjab, met with young students, and toured “slum areas where children of snake charmers are being educated by the Guru Nanak Slum Society.” He’s spoken out against violence toward women and cautioned against too much government focus on cricket at the expense of other sports. He’s also been running. On January 20, he ran a 4.2K race as part of the Mumbai Marathon, a tune-up for his appearance in a 10K at the Hong Kong Marathon in late February.

 

But as busy as he’s been, he still found time for a gentle poke at India’s leader. During a school tour, Fauja casually told reporters that he’d like to go on a run with 80-year-old Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

 

Let’s take a second to consider this. Manmohan Singh is a revered world leader. (In 2010, Forbes listed him as the 18th most powerful person in the world.) He’s beloved by other world leaders. He’s recognized as “a man of uncommon decency and grace.” But there’s no indication that he’s ever run anything other than a political race. He might not be in the best condition, because he’s devoted his life to the well-being of 1.2 billion people. Which is time-consuming. Oh, and he’s had multiple cardiac bypass surgeries, the last in 2009.

 

You know he isn’t going to go on a run with you, Fauja. This is like the grizzled sergeant inviting a green recruit to step into the ring. It’s like a veteran bricklayer challenging the office accountant: Let’s build a wall together. It’s like Picasso throwing down on a recent art school grad.

 

He’s the leader of the world’s largest democracy. Give him a break.

 

Image is from the cover of Fauja Singh’s biography, Turbaned Tornado, by Khushwant Singh.