On Sunday, Emma Maria Mazzenga, 90, from Padua, Italy, claimed one other world document within the W90+ class, clocking 51.47 seconds over 200m outside in San Biagio di Callalta, Treviso, Italy, breaking the earlier world document by a minute and 48 seconds. (Mazzenga broke the indoor document in January, operating 54.47 at a meet in Veneto, Italy.)
Getting older with grace and grit
In an interview with Reuters, Mazzenga shared that after taking a 20-year hiatus from operating to lift her youngsters, she returned to the game at 53, starting her promising profession as a grasp’s athlete. During the last 37 years, she has accrued 5 world information, 9 European information and 28 Italian information in numerous classes.
Mazzenga made tackling such a feat look simple, confidently cruising across the monitor like she was warming up. You must see this to imagine it.
Mazzenga crossed the end line with a giant grin, barely breaking a sweat. “I’m very comfortable and happy, and in addition a bit stunned, as a result of I didn’t suppose I went that quick,” she stated post-race.
Advantages of “blue zones”
Mazzenga lives in Italy, recognized for its excessive life expectancy, notably in Sardinia, one of many world’s 4 “blue zones” (areas of the world which have a better variety of people who reside longer than the anticipated common). The opposite three blue zones embody Okinawa (Japan), Nicoya (Costa Rica) and Ikaria (Greece).
Japan’s Emiko Saito set the earlier world document for the 200m within the W90+ class in 2022, operating 53.35 seconds. (Japan, like Italy, is understood for its excessive life expectancy–84.95 throughout genders, in keeping with Worldometer. Consultants argue it’s because they prioritize “Moais”–a small, tightly knit social circle that helps a wholesome psychological state all through life, which extends into previous age.)
WATCH: 91-year-old Italian girl speeds to age-group 200m world document
Associates and wine: good for the soles
For Mazzenga, sprinting is greater than only a sport. It’s a manner to keep linked. Working “allowed me all the time to be surrounded by lots of people, in order that I used to be by no means alone,” she stated in her interview with Reuters. This social interplay, notably the laughter it brings, has been discovered to enhance psychological well-being and enhance the life expectancy of populations in Italy.
Mazzenga shared that she usually enjoys grabbing beers with fellow runners to have a good time her success. Curiously, one examine discovered that the typical alcohol consumption in Sardinia is the same as that of Padua, the place longevity is barely decrease, indicating, if not the doable protecting advantages of alcohol consumption, a minimum of a impartial impact on longevity in that area.
Working to scale back stress
Working has additionally been a robust device for Mazzenga in managing stress. “It received me by means of some tough instances, which in fact haven’t been missing in a life so long as mine,” she shared. Whereas full avoidance of stress is unattainable, specialists say discovering methods to manage improves longevity. Whereas Mazzenga reportedly strives for perfection in her coaching, outdoors of operating, she maintains a wholesome steadiness, together with friendships, leisure and common bodily exercise.
Remarkably, Mazzenga’s common ending time within the 200m is barely getting quicker as she ages. Earlier than her 91st birthday, she plans to complete the yr off robust and race in June’s Italian championships, though, Mazzenga joked, she prefers “to not make long-term plans.”
