78-year-old man ends daily running streak after 52 years and 39 days

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 2:58 p.m. ET

Sports Illustrated, Extra Mustard/Sports Illustrated via Extra Mustard

78-year-old Ron Hill has finally taken a day off.

The 1964 Olympian ended his daily running streak after 52 years and 39 days due to illness that required a day off, he announced on Facebook.

Hill started his streak after he was disappointed with his 19th place showing in the marathon and 18th place finish in the 10,000 meters at the Tokyo Olympics, according to Runner's World. Since starting the streak, he qualified for the 1968 and 1972 Olympics, and improved on both his finished in the 10,000 meters and marathon respectively. He also won the 1970 Boston Marathon, one of more than 110 marathons he’s completed in his life.

The streak ends after more than 19,000 days of running, which is the largest known streak in history.