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A Chinese man recently completed a 26.2-mile marathon in under three and a half hours, all while chain smoking cigarettes along the way.
A 50-year-old runner that goes by the name “Uncle Chen” took part in the Xin’anjiang Marathon in Jiande, China last week. He was seen lighting up and puffing down on a pack of darts throughout the event. Even more impressively, he finished the race with an incredible time.
Chen crossed the finish line in three hours and 28 minutes. That’s more than an hour under your average mark for a 50-year-old male runner.
Who says smoking is bad for you? It seems to be a performance enhancer for Uncle Chen.
When all was said and done, Chen placed 574th out of the 1,500 participants in the field. Photos of the impressive feat surfaced online and have now gone viral on social media.
And this apparently was not the first time the runner’s been spotted slamming heaters mid-race. He was seen in 2018 and 2019 events ripping darts, too, most notably in the Guangzhou Marathon.
Many on Twitter chimed in with their thoughts after witnessing the bizarre sight.
One person asked, “Is that how to smoke and stay healthy?” while another commented, “performance enhancing drug,” after seeing Uncle Chen’s impressive time.
This person says that Chen is “the world’s greatest athlete.” He might just be. How many others can burn through a pack of Marlboros while racing more 26 miles?
While it’s not something you’ll see in most marathons, Chen’s tactic here could be a bit counterproductive. But it seems to be working for him, so who am I to judge?
Related: Dad jogs 26.2 miles around hospital to raise money for his son with cancer