10 bizarre running facts

1) While running, the average person’s heart creates enough pressure to squirt blood 30 feet.

2) You should wear red when you race.

Anthropologists at the University of Durham performed a study on the effect of red clothing on athletes. Their findings showed that when opponents are matched in skill and fitness level, the athlete wearing red was more likely to be victorious. The theory of the researchers is that “red seems to be the color, across species, that signals male dominance and testosterone levels.”

3) Someone has already run a marathon in space

In April of 2007, astronaut Sunita Williams became the first person to run a marathon in space. She ran onboard the International Space Station, at the same time that the Boston Marathon was occurring.

4) Running may affect the sex of your child.

A study from the University of Glasgow determined that males who run more than 30 miles a week have a 40% chance of fathering a son, in comparison to a 51% chance observed in the general populace. Runners who ran less than 30 miles a week had a 62% of fathering a daughter.

5) Only 15 athletes toed the line to run the Boston Marathon its inaugural year

Today, the Boston Marathon is one of the biggest in the world, with 36,000 runners participating in 2014. The race begin in 1897, a year after the first modern day marathon at the 1867 Olympics. John J. McDermott won that first race, which was known as the B.A.A. Road Race at the time. He was listed as a native of New York, but is thought to have been originally from Nova Scotia.

6) A Boston Marathon winner took the subway to win the race

In 1980, Rosie Ruiz became infamous for being disqualified after winning the Boston Marathon. It was discovered that she took the subway to reach the finish line.

7) The barefoot trend had some A-list believers

Jake Gyllenhaal has been known to run in minimalist footwear.

8) Nike wasn’t the company’s first name

Blue Ribbon Sports, the company that we know today as Nike, was founded on Prefontaine’s birthday, which is Jan. 25.

9) After winning the 1982 Boston Marathon in 30 degree heat, Alberto Salazar was given six litres of intravenous fluids

This was all to make up for the fact that Salazar did not drink on the course.

10) In 2011, Fauja Singh became the first centenarian to complete a marathon.

The 100 year-old crossed the finish line of the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 8:11:05.