A Marathon effort !!

Wednesday 9 February 2011

A Belgian runner has set a new world record after completing an astonishing 365 marathons in as many days in seven countries.

Stefaan Engels, 49, (pictured)crossed the finish line on his final race in Barcelona, Spain, after pounding the roads in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Canada, Mexico and the U.S.A. in the last year.

He averaged an impressive four hours for each of his marathons, with the quickest taking two hours and 56 minutes.

It was his second attempt at the feat after he injured his leg 18 days into his first try last year.

Dubbed the 'Marathon Man', Mr Engels was diagnosed with asthma as a child and told not to do sports.

He said he took on the incredible challenge as an example to others.

'After running 20 triathlons in one year, I was not ready to go back to normal life,' he said.

'I also wanted to inspire people by showing that if I could run a marathon a day for an entire year, anyone could run or bike a little each day or do something about their weight problem.'

'I recover quickly. I don't run fast and my heartbeat is slow, below 100 if I run 10 kilometres, but it is more a mental story.

'The problem was thinking about running a marathon every day. I just told myself to run that day and did not think about the next day or next week.'

Mr Engels added: 'There were a lot of moments when I thought "today, I won't finish".

'It is time for other things. It is time to give my body a rest.'

Mr Engels already holds the record for the most Ironman Triathlons in a year after completing 20 in 2007 and 2008.

The previous record was held by Japanese runner Akinori Kusuda, who ran 52 consecutive marathons at the age of 65 in 2009.

What about that?