Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Gabriella Clare

Middle-aged runner completes marathon while chain-smoking throughout the race

A Chinese runner completed a marathon in less than three-and-a-half hours while chain smoking around the entire course.

'Uncle Chen', 50, completed the race in 3 hours and 28 minutes, coming 574th out of more than 1,500 competitors in the Xin'anjiang Marathon near Shanghai last week.

Photos of him chain-smoking around the course quickly went viral, and Chen became an internet sensation, leading to race organisers publishing his finish time to avoid any doubt.

Chen completed the 26 mile course whilst smoking throughout (Weibo)

It's not the first time he's puffed his way around a track, either. He was also pictured with a cigarette during the 2018 Guangzhou Marathon and 2019 Xiamen Marathon, finishing the 2018 race in 3hrs 36mins and the 2019 contest in 3hrs 32mins.

His antics have seen him nicknamed 'smoking brother' during a 2017 marathon, and local media reported that his habit is something he only does whilst running.

However, while most Weibo (a Chinese social media site) users admired Chen's talent, some have pointed out that his smoking could be negatively affecting other runners.

By-Shen wrote: "Whoever runs next to him is unlucky."

While user Oriental Mountain asked: "Is this a doping violation?"

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.