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90-year-old sets record for fastest 200-meter sprint

Emma Maria Mazzenga continues to break records as she ages, recently completing the fastest 200-meter event by a woman her age.
Posted at 12:48 PM, Jan 22, 2024

Emma Maria Mazzenga, 90, broke a world record earlier this month, running the fastest 200-meter sprint by a woman age 90 or older. She ran the event in Padua, Italy, in 54.47 seconds, which broke the previous record by 6 seconds. 

The previous record was held by Canadian Olga Kotelko, who set the record in 2010. 

Mazzenga's pace was the equivalent of running a mile in 7 minutes, 15 seconds.

The Italian woman has consistently competed in masters track events for years. 

While she frequently participates in 200-meter events, she also competed in 100-meter and 400-meter events in 2023. 

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Last year, she ran her fastest 200-meter event of 2023 in 48.98 seconds. She also ran a 400-meter event last year in 2 minutes, 4.29 seconds. 

According to event organizers, Mazzenga had an injury late last year, which set her back. She said after utilizing an exercise bike she was able to get back on track. 

She previously set the women's age 85 record for running the 400-meter in 2019 with a time of 1 minute, 51.89 seconds. Along with the 400-meter record, she earned European records for the fastest 60-meter and 200-runs for women age 85. 

She holds 113 national age group titles and 31 national age group records.

AARP offers tips on its website for older runners interested in running.