Betty Brussel swam away from everyone in Canada a few days ago. This year she turns 100 years old.
If you compare her to Olympic swimmers, Betty Brussel can’t keep up in the pool. In her age group, however, the 99-year-old Canadian is top class. At a competition in the province of British Columbia, the elderly athlete set three world records.
First, she beat the best time on the 400-meter freestyle by almost four minutes in the 100 to 104 age group. She also quickly competed in the 50 meter backstroke and 50 meter breaststroke. The Canadian also set a world record here, reports the British “The Guardian”. The fact that she can already take part in the 100-year-old group is due to the rules: in these, the year of birth is crucial.
“When I’m competing, I don’t think about anything. Nothing. I just count the laps so I know how many I have left. I always try to find a pace that I can maintain – you push your body “I have a lot to offer in these races. And in the last lap I give everything I have,” she told the newspaper. The low number of participants makes winning a little easier for her. In some competitions, no one but her manages to reach the finish line.
Discovered love for swimming late
Brussel was born in the Netherlands in 1024 and learned to swim near Amsterdam. In 1959 she emigrated to Canada with her husband Gerrit and settled near the town of Grand Forkes, east of Vancouver.
But she didn’t take part in competitions until she was already in her sixties. “I had no idea what I was actually doing,” she remembers. But she was hooked. Since then, she has been training constantly, even in her old age, twice a week. “I don’t even think about the records, I just swim. I make the most of it, and if it’s a record then that’s fine. If I win, I’m happy. But if I enjoyed it, I’m happy even happier,” she says.
In addition to her physical fitness, she also keeps her mind busy, enjoys reading, solving crossword puzzles and knitting.