At the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in San Diego, Harriette Thompson set a new record for being the oldest woman to complete a marathon.
The previous record holder was Gladys Burrill at 92 years, 19 days old. Thompson is only 46 days older than Burrill, which is still old enough to break Burrill’s record:
Marathon spokesman Dan Cruz says she looked strong at the finish. What Cruz failed to mention is that she also looked good doing it, making her way across the finish line while sporting a huge smile.
Thompson ran the 26.2 miles in seven hours and 24 minutes, or a little under 17 minutes per mile. The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon was her 15th marathon. She’s a cancer survivor, and in her training video, she says that she runs for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society because many of her friends have had leukemia and lymphoma:
“In fact, I just lost my brother to lymphoma, and my husband lost his brother to leukemia, so it’s a really good cause and I’m happy that I could still try anyhow.”
(Via Mashable)
