Ed Whitlock Has Died - Rest in Peace

RIP

H.S. Coach #64549 wrote:

Goodness, I don't think I could say I have heroes in my life, but Mr. Whitlock is an inspiration to me & perhaps the closest thing I have to a hero. I can only hope to live a good healthy lift until the end (like Mr. Whitlock did).

Having known him--if only through his posts on this cruddy website--is an honor.

Thank you, Mr. Whitlock.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLaCwR3hybE

Even at 85 still landing midfoot, and the arm action of a miler.

The NY Times obituary for Whitlock was just published:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/14/sports/ed-whitlock-dead-masters-marathon-record-setter.html?_r=0

The final two paragraphs confirm that he was not being treated for prostate cancer prior to 2017:

"By December, though, his running had been interrupted by various pains in his shoulder, knee, hip and groin. His weight had also dropped to 105 pounds. Even so, as with many runners, he was reluctant to visit a doctor. He gave no indication that he was gravely ill.

“To some extent, I believe if anything is wrong, the body will cure itself,” he told The Times, adding, “I don’t want to be a burden on the system.” "

Brojos, may I second this? Def needs to be quote of the day, and soon. such erudite wisdom from Mr Whitlock, but also shows the size of his balls. Double Mottram's, at the least. What a guy.

easy weeks wrote:

Love this quote from his Feb 12, 2016 beautifully-written article:

" Really sub 3 at 70 should not be that great a challenge for a talented marathon runner."

This should be the quote of the day tomorrow. It really is illuminating to read his thoughts on the aging runner, especially that last sentence.

Ed was an inspiration and one BAMF. Can't count the number of times I told people about him and it blew my mind every time I said his records out loud.

My workout tomorrow will be dedicated to him.

RIP and know that no one is touching those records for a very long time.

Wow... shocked and saddened to here of this... RIP Ed and condolences to his family.

Ed will be missed here for sure, he was a major contributor to the best of LRC.

Anybody notice the full circle of his life span? Birth and death date?

"To some extent, I believe if anything is wrong, the body will cure itself,” he told The Times, adding, “I don’t want to be a burden on the system.”

I admire his valor.

An even faster performance he was just a few seconds behind me at the 2000 crim. Ed ran 60:08 for a hilly 10 miles at the age of 69. I wonder if that is the fastest ever for that age

In trying to persuade local masters athletes to raise their standards and run more mileage as opposed to what runners world and social media was telling them...I always referenced Whitlock.

Seemed like the high mileage only espoused for the young and he was instrumental in getting my athletes to bump.

wish every club had an ed whitlock

Hi Everyone. This is Neil Whitlock, Ed's son.

Just want to thank everyone for their kind words about Dad.

Dad was a big fan of the Letsrun community. He loved reading through the message boards. He would often walk into the kitchen where Mom was watching the news. She would say "did you hear about ... some random world event" and he would reply "yes, that was posted on Letsrun hours ago."

In whatever way my father might have inspired some of you with your running, I hope you are able to hold onto that and wish everyone success and enjoyment in striving for your goals.

Neil

Glad you got to read through all these tributes Neil. Your Dad was 'Da Man'!

Will be sadly missed

Reg and Frank

Neil Whitlock wrote:

Hi Everyone. This is Neil Whitlock, Ed's son.

Just want to thank everyone for their kind words about Dad.

Dad was a big fan of the Letsrun community. He loved reading through the message boards. He would often walk into the kitchen where Mom was watching the news. She would say "did you hear about ... some random world event" and he would reply "yes, that was posted on Letsrun hours ago."

In whatever way my father might have inspired some of you with your running, I hope you are able to hold onto that and wish everyone success and enjoyment in striving for your goals.

Neil

Hi Neil - my deepest condolences to you and your family. I'm from Southern Ontario, and talked/raced with Ed many times at local events over the past 16 years. He was an entrant in my first race.

Although I'm sure you are more aware than anyone, I just wanted to let you know again how truly loved and admired your father was by everyone in the community. He was a wonderful man who gave so much of his time to younger impressionable runners like myself, and never had a bad thing to say about anybody. His smile lit up every room he walked into.

You are a lucky man to have been brought up by such an icon. I hope you and your family are, through the sadness, able to celebrate the wonderful life he led and the positive influence he had on countless people. He will never be forgotten.

My deepest sympathies to the Whitlock family, also. When I compare my race times to anyone other than my age graded times for a differing time of my life, it would be to Ed W. Last time I did was last fall, and, as a 65 year old, running a 1/2 marathon at the pace that Ed raced his MARATHON, and 20 years OLDER than me! Talk about humbling and also inspiring. What a great athlete and fine man.

I have a strange urge to fly across the continent and run three hours of laps in his cemetery. Much more so than running Boston, New York or any other hallowed courses.

Thanks Neil for getting your dad to start doing marathons. I feel eternally grateful for the advice your dad provided for us on this board. I feel honored that he read and responded to a few of my posts.

I have often said. People will admire you for your accomplishments as an athlete. They will love you for the person you are off the track. Wayne Gretzky was a good example.

I recall Donovan Bailey complaining that he was not loved by Canadians. He was not Ed Whitlock.

You can admire his feats but not everyone of old age has genes or natural build and stride to accomplish what he did. To be able to do what you love and then die. That must be a meaningful life. Mostly I admire the humble, friendly, simple attitude he had towards himself, running and to others. That made an impression and I will never forget. Wish I had the chance to meet him but I have a friend who interviewed him for a Norwegian running magazine and he was so impressed. He left a footprint. RIP Ed and hope you are setting new records in a distance place.

Rest In Peace Ed! My next run will be dedicated to you.

I am in Australia, and today a sporting but non-running friend, completely out of the blue, started talking about Ed and his death and how unbelievably quick he was. I got a tear in my eye!

I always looked fwd to threads about Ed. I am hoping they never stop.