We’ve all heard it about Puffy, P.Diddy or whatever his name is crushed 26.2 and of course, so did Oprah. Katie Holmes followed the trend in New York City (perhaps she was running away from Tom “crazypants” Cruise?) as did Lance Armstrong at the Boston Marathon (although that result might be erased from the record books).
Recently I found myself wondering what other celebrities have run marathons? So, I embarked on a bit of research and dug up some surprising celebrities who have gone all the way.
1.) Mario Lopez. The entertainment show, pageant, reality show host with the most ran the Boston Marathon in 2002, and he didn’t pick up the sport just to show up Zack or impress Kelly. He ran as part of a charity team for Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America and he’s got some seriously sweet pecs. Just sayin’.
The benefits of being fast. “I’ll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office.” – George W. Bush
2.) George W. Bush. Sure, Paul Ryan and Sarah Palin are the most recent Republican politicians in the news for their marathon running, but did you know our most recent ex-president also has run 26.2? Reportedly training for only a month, he was a natural, completing the 1993 Houston Marathon in 3 hours and 44 minutes. Not too shabby, right?
Aim high. “Here’s the deal I’m the best there is. Plain and simple. I wake up in the morning and I piss excellence.” – Will Ferrell as Ricky Bobby in Talledega Nights
3.) Will Ferrell. Yep. I guess his streaking scene in Old School could have been prep work for his 2003 appearance at the Boston Marathon. This elf is a legit runner who handled 26.2 in under 4 hours.
4.) Shia LaBeouf. Even Stevens anyone? The Disturbia star completed the Los Angeles Marathon in March 2010 and ran in support of veterans’ charities. He said the experience transformed him. (Yeah, that was as bad as you thought it was!)
Are any Democrats known for their running, other than to McDonalds? (Bill Clinton, I’m looking at you and your flabby white 1992 thighs!)
5.) Alanis Morisette. You oughta know that this singer is another charity runner. She supported the Masai Wilderness Conservation Trust at the 2009 New York City Marathon. The Jagged Little Pill singer, claiming to be 90% vegan, also ran the Bizz Johnson Marathon outside of San Francisco with her twin brother Wade, raising awareness for the National Eating Disorders Association. She was then quoted in Runner’s World as saying “I think there is no better way to invite a human being to view their body differently than by inviting them to be an athlete, by revering one’s body as an instrument rather than just an ornament.” This is some good advice we should take. Don’t you think?
Do you know of any celebrities who have run a marathon? Does this inspire you? Or does it just annoy you? And most importantly, are Al Gore’s shorts in that photo going to give you nightmares?
I have a few more for you … and a little piece of history. Edward Norton (he of “Fight Club” fame) and Joaquin Phoenix have both run marathons, as have Ryan Reynolds, Drew Carey, Al Roker and Ethan Zohn (Survivor: Africa). Most of them have been at New York City or LA when I’ve been there – I’m not some weird celebrity marathon stalker!!!
As to my little piece of history, guess which Salty ran a mile of the Boston Marathon with one Will Ferrell? That’s right – Clove! In an absolutely ridiculous “meet cute,” we both grabbed the same cup at a water stop, it got dumped, and as we were saying “sorry” I realized it was Will Ferrell. He was filming Anchorman at the time so he had that ridiculous mustache, but he was totally cool and chill. I didn’t do the whole “Oh my God, you’re Will Ferrell” thing; we just talked about the weather and the race. But then I had to dust him cause I was a little bit faster :)
That’s a nice story and all, but what I want to know is do you piss excellence too? Also, Al Gore’s shorts! SHUDDER! :)
Salty, at the risk of thread-jacking Gingko’s post, you know very well that my piss is actually estrogen-deficient and loaded with synthetic HCG. Kisses, love!
Clove,
That’s awesome! I hope someone snapped a picture of you running and chatting with Mr. Anchorman. But let’s be honest, I’m glad you left him in the dust. You’re way too fast for that. :)
I would have liked to have run a mile with Ryan Reynolds…yum!
I definitely knew about Ryan Reynolds because of the Beating Ryan Reynolds blog. I remember Ryan being a really great sport about it!
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Haha – that is hilarious! I want to run with Will Ferrell.
I have one who isn’t a celebrity, but it pretty cool anyway: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas ran a 3:11 at the Marine Corps Marathon.
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We could have done an all political figure post – heck, an all conservative political figure post! In fact, I think we need a 5 reasons only republicans politicians run marathons :)
Fun post! And interesting about the dems vs. republicans, I’m amazed by Bush’s feat! I didn’t know that but it’s very impressive, WOW! And here I am struggling to get to a 5k, lol! Thanks for the great posts, they inspire me to be like you all one day! :)
Twitter: misszippy1
says:
Since there seems to be a right-wing lean here, let me add in that Harry Reid went 3:16 at Boston. Lefties can run, too!
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One of my claims-to-fame is that I passed Will Ferrell in the 2003 Boston Marathon. I remember coming up on a big group of people with fans yelling. Then I realized it was him along with his training coach. I think he ran just under 4:00. The next day in the paper, he was quoted saying he was sorry to everyone who was always around him because he let out a lot of farts. Too funny!
Great post!
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To even out the political sides, I’d like to point out that Al Gore and John Edwards are marathoners, too!
Thanks Sassy! I was hoping someone would point that out!
And I’d run a 5k with Bill Clinton and/or Al Gore any day!