British astronaut Tim Peake on Sunday gave his countrymen some company by running 42 kilometres on a treadmill in space while thousands ran the London Marathon 400 kilometres below him. Peake committed to the event solemnly, counting down on video as runners awaited the flagging off at the start line, AFP reported.

Peake is estimated to have finished the race in 3 hours, 35 minutes and 21 seconds, making it the fastest-ever space marathon, a fact the Guinness World Records authorities recognised later in the day. Of course, only one other person has ever run a marathon in space before. American astronaut Sunita Williams finished alongside the 2007 Boston Marathon in 4 hours, 23 minutes and 10 seconds.

Peake undergoes rigorous physical training on board the International Space Station, in which he is flying on a six-month mission. He has become a popular figure in Britain, especially through his social media offerings. On Sunday, he claimed that while the 39,000 runners finished the marathon in London, his spacecraft had travelled 100,000 kilometres.