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58-year-old runs speedy barefoot marathon in India

Barefoot Bobby is taking the marathon world by storm

Barefoot bobby runner Photo by: Thomas "Bobby" Philip/Facebook

If you haven’t heard of Barefoot Bobby, he’s a 58-year-old runner from Bangalore, India, who has taken the world by storm with his unusual approach to running—barefoot. Last Sunday, at the 2024 Mumbai Marathon, Bobby ran one of the fastest times of his career, finishing in 3:11:47 for third in the men’s 55-59 age group.

Barefoot Bobby’s running journey began in 2009, when he started training with his daughter for a school race. While his daughter eventually stopped running, Bobby, whose real name is Thomas Philip, continued to see how far he could go. He wound up at a Nike store in his hometown to grab a pair of shoes, but they didn’t last him as long as he would’ve liked, so he ditched them altogether.

Since 2012, Bobby has been running barefoot and has tackled every race distance from 5K to 50K. In 2015, he became the first runner from India to complete the Boston Marathon barefoot. He continued to make waves by running a 3:12 marathon at the 2017 NYC Marathon (also barefoot).

When asked why he does this, Bobby points to his minimalist approach. “I do my fastest runs barefoot, and that’s how I started and I’ve just kept it up,” he said in a 2023 interview. “The cheer I get from others running every day; these moments are precious. Running barefoot has put me outside my comfort zone.”

 

Recently retired from a career in telecommunications, Bobby now has the time to fully pursue his passion. He has an extensive list of races he hopes to knock off in the next two years—all barefoot, of course.

Given the mileage he’s put in, you might think Bobby’s feet are made of steel, but he insists that barefoot running is still a challenge. He finds it almost impossible to run barefoot in the cold, as everything feels sharper and more painful. A 5K is the toughest distance for him, as it is more physically demanding on his feet.

Barefoot bobby runner
Photo: Thomas “Bobby” Philip/Facebook

While we can’t confirm if there’s any blood relation between Barefoot Bobby and the legendary Ethiopian marathoner Abebe Bikila, who won the 1960 Olympic Marathon in Rome barefoot, Bobby’s times and commitment to barefoot running are nonetheless impressive.

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