70-year-old woman smashes world record with a ludicrously fast marathon time

A pensioner is making us all look bad after completing the Boston Marathon with a ridiculously quick time. 70-year-old Jeannie Rice, set a new world record for her age category after finishing the race in just under three and a half hours. She did it in 3:27:50, to be exact. The grandmother, from Ohio, casually crossed the finish line and said she felt absolutely fine. The previous record for the 70+ women’s category was three hours, 35 minutes and 29 seconds, set by Helga Miketta in 2013. Jeannie crushed that record by more than seven minutes – and made it in to work the following Tuesday. Jeannie has been running marathons her whole life, with her debut in 1984 in Cleveland. Her fastest recorded time was three hours and 16 minutes at her second attempt in Columbus. Chicago was her 116th marathon. ‘I’ve been running for 35 years and it is a huge part of my life,’ Jeannie tells Metro.I love competition and preparing for races helps to keep me motivated to run better and faster.’

This unstoppable granny regularly trains to work on her speed, running 5Ks and 10Ks all year round. She even travels to Florida for half the year so she can escape the cold weather and keep on the move. ‘I really do not enjoy treadmills,’ she explains. ‘The only hard thing about training is keeping going through the cold weather, the wind and the rain does definitely make it tougher.’ If you think being 70 means retirement, lie-ins and leisurely, slow-paced days, think again. Jeannie starts her day at 5.30am for a run with her younger training buddies. As marathons approach, her weekly mileage can get up to 65.

‘I run every day and make sure to get enough sleep and a good diet,’ she says. ‘Age is just a number. If you’re physically capable you should just keep running – there’s really nothing stopping you. ‘It always feels great to see that finish line, especially in Chicago. I was extremely happy to see the finish line when I knew I had broken the World Record by more than seven minutes. It was an amazing feeling. But there’s absolutely no slowing down for Jeannie. Mere weeks after her incredible race, she’s already set her sights on her next achievement. ‘Now I have a new goal – to break my own record time in three weeks in New York City. NYC will be my 117th marathon. If we have the right conditions, I know I can break my record.’

Metro.