Man chain-smokes his way to marathon finish line in under three and a half hours

'Uncle Chen' as he is known in running circles, chain-smoked throughout the entire 26-mile run. Credit: Weibo

A marathon runner known as 'Uncle Chen' chain-smoked his way through a 26-mile race, managing to beat his own personal record.

Leaning on an old habit while completing the Xin'anjiang Marathon near Shanghai last week, the 50-year-old finished the race in under three and a half hours.

Placing 574th out of more than 1,500 competitors, pictures went viral on social media site Weibo after race organisers posted pictures of his performance.

Chen lighting up a cigarette on his marathon route. Credit: Weibo

It is not the first time Chen has been pictured chain-smoking his way to the finish line, running previously in the 2018 Guangzhou Marathon and 2019 Xiamen Marathon.

Local media reported that Chen only smokes when he runs.

Within running circles he is referred to as the 'Smoking Brother', and may be the fastest runner to complete a race while chain-smoking.

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