George Littlewood

George Littlewood (1859–1912) was a professional pedestrian known as the Sheffield Flyer who still holds the 6-day world record for walking. This was achieved in Sheffield, England, between 6 and 11 March 1882, on a 13-lap to the mile track, 531 miles.

Littlewood is also famous for setting the British 6-day race record of 623 miles 1,320 yards – a record that still stands today. This Multiday race took place at Madison Square Gardens in New York between 26 November and 1 December 1888. That world record wasn't beaten for 96 years.

George Littlewood was born on 20 March 1859, in Rawmarsh, Yorkshire, England.

In November 1879, Littlewood starred in his first race as a budding long-distance athlete in a six-day, 72-hour, 12 hours per day, 'go-as-you-please' event in which he came in fourth of 28 contestants winning a prize of £4 for scoring 275 miles in the allotted time on a 19-lap to the mile track at Wolverhampton.

He then went Nottingham, in February 1880, where, in a 7-day, six hours per night contest, he came in 5th of 19 runners, winning £2.

A couple of months later, he went to Leeds where he won his first race in a field of 13 contestants and created a new 12 hours per day, 72-hour world record of 374 miles on a 38-lap to the mile track in a circus rink. For winning, he secured the £35 first prize — plus an extra prize of £10 for beating the record. Littlewood would later remark that this was the greatest race he ever won.

His next event which was his first venture to London, where in September, of the same year, and competing in field of 29 at the Agricultural Hall, Islington, he won the Sir John Astley, 'Champion Gold Medal' and a prize of £60, which included £10 for beating the then world record of 405 miles.

Now established as an up-and-coming figure in his chosen sport, his connections entered the then 21-year-old into the 6th international version of the Astley Belt — the blue riband 142-hour, six days, 'go-as you-please' contest again at the “Aggie”. He would be up against the reigning long-distance champion — the formidable Charles Rowelll — a man, who only the year before at Madison Square Garden, New York, had secured phenomenal prize money of $50,000 in two races in that city. During the race, in which he finished as runner-up with a score of 470 miles, George also took on the great “Blower” Brown of Fulham, and some very good American athletes.

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