Arjen Robben Runs His First Marathon In Insanely Fast Time

 

 

Arjen Robben, a former Bayern Munich and Chelsea player, ran his first marathon in an unbelievable time.

 

In July, the 38-year-old announced his retirement from football for the second time, having returned to play for his childhood club Groningen.

The Netherlands great, on the other hand, only played seven times in all tournaments before calling it a day.

He keeps himself healthy and active, though, and ran in the Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday. Dart has been a fan favorite for years, cutting in on his trusty left foot and curling one into the upper bins.

 

His quickness was unquestionable throughout his career, and he maintained it in his last years at Bayern. This was a new kind of difficulty since Robben had to maintain a consistent pace for a longer amount of time.

Robben completed the 26.2 mile race around Rotterdam in three hours, thirteen minutes, and forty seconds.

He competed alongside former Dutch speed skater Erben Wennemars, who set three world records during his career.

Robben averaged a blistering 7 minutes and 23 seconds per mile while winning league titles in Holland, England, Spain, and Germany.

 

But footage of Robben running the race shows him feeling the effects of such a mammoth sporting task and he admitted afterwards it was a “real fight”.

“Not fun, it really wasn’t fun. I made it, but that’s about it. I often went deep and had to fight often enough, but this was also a real fight,” the former Netherlands international told local channel Rijnmond, via Goal.

“That audience on the side helps you so much. Thanks to everyone for that, that got me through. In the beginning I was a bit preoccupied with a time, but at a certain point you throw that overboard.

“Then it’s surviving and entering my first marathon. Then you notice what something like that does to your body, but I made it.”