Who runs the world? Vegan girls!

They certainly run the 11-day Marathon des Sables across the Sahara Desert. Forty-two-year-old vegan Briton Fiona Oakes ran 151 miles—more than a marathon every 24 hours—in the world's toughest foot race.

Official U.S. Navy Imagery | cc by 2.0

Oakes joins an elite club of vegan and vegetarian athletes, including nine-time Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis, Ultraman triathlete Rich Roll, ultramarathoner Scott Jurek, and record-breaking 100-year-old marathon runner Fauja Singh, who know that a great performance starts with healthy food.

Ready to get your own motor running? 

The Daily Meal recently compiled a list of top vegetarian athletes, including Mike Tyson, Billie Jean King, and Joe Namath. We were inspired to compile our own list of 10 animal-friendly top talents who have gotten brawn from broccoli and endurance from eggplant:
 

1. Ricky Williams, who fills out a PETA T-shirt as nicely as he does a Miami Dolphins jersey, had a ball hosting PETA's vegetarian chicken-wing taste test.
2. Robert Parish is one of the "50 Greatest Players in NBA History," partly because he made history of wimpy meat-eaters who got in his way.
3. "Olympian of the Century" Carl Lewis is a gold-medal winner with a heart to match.
4. Ultimate Fighter winner and King of the Cage world champion Mac Danzig eats his opponents for breakfast, but what he won't eat is animals.
5. Maybe Home Run Derby winner Prince Fielder inspired the Milwaukee Brewers' Miller Park to add veggie dogs and vegetable wraps to its menu?
6. Four-time Mr. Universe Bill Pearl is a gem for animals, with his healthy vegetarian diet.
7. If there is one thing Olympic gold medalist Hannah Teeter is as passionate about as she is about snowboarding, it's compassion for animals.
8. Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier credits his vegan diet with helping him recover after he was hit by a car while cycling, and he came back to win an Ultra Marathon Championship.
9. How do you get to be named by Men's Fitness as one of the "25 Fittest Guys in the World"? Ask Rich Roll, and be ready for him to tell you, "Go vegan."
10.  MMA Strikeforce Champion Jake Shields is a force to be reckoned with in the ring, but never in his life has he forced animals to die for his diet.
     

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Recently, Seattle-based ultramarathoner Scott Jurek told the New York Times that he intended to set a new American record at the 24-Hour Run world championship in Brive, France. And Scott did just that: He ran—get this—more than 165.7 miles in 24 hours.

For this tremendous feat, he set his record, won the silver medal, and was crowned USA Today's Athlete of the Week. And he did it all on vegan fuel, as he has in all the ultramarathons he's run since 1999 (he averages eight to 10 ultramarathons a year).

This longtime vegan is in good company: Sports scientists know that athletes can thrive on an animal-free diet, and so does Ultraman Rich Roll, Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis, and even Ultimate Fighting champion Mac Danzig.

From one vegan extreme marathoner* to another, I'd like to personally congratulate Scott on his accomplishment and thank him for caring about animals and the environment. And with Scott on Twitter, it was so easy to show him some love.

Written by Karin Bennett

*So maybe my Real Housewives of New York City marathon wasn't in the same league as Scott's ultramarathon, but my concerns about factory farming and climate change are. Are yours?