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Up to speed!

by Damon Wilkinson
9/ 4/2008

AGE is no barrier for pensioner Louise Gilchrist who is racing towards a world record after a sensational finish in the Wilmslow Half Marathon.

Speedy Louise, 75, ran a potential world best time in the race and is a heartbeat away from being the fastest woman in her age group.

She completed the course in one hour, 51 minutes and 38 seconds, believed to be a world record for over 75s. There are no official records for the age group but the time has been posted on a leading athletics website and, so far at least, no one has disputed it.

It is the sixth time Louise has broken a world record in her age category and she has also won two over-60 gold medals at the London Marathon. Her achievements are made all the more remarkable by the fact she didn’t start running until she was in her 50s after doctors advised her to exercise following an operation.

A former Rochdale council worker she now trains four times a week, running about 20 miles, and competes most weekends.

She said: "It has just become a way of life. I enjoy the sense of achievement you get from running a fast time.

"I cannot believe I am the age I am, I feel good and want to carry on running for years."

But despite the remarkable effort, she still wasn’t happy with her performance. She added: "Runners always think we can do better. The trouble is I do not accept that I am getting older and expect to run faster than I do."

Andy O’Sullivan, commentator at the Wilmslow Half Marathon said: "Louise is remarkable. There were 4,000 people at the event and she was easily one of the most popular runners there."

Octogenarian Ron ‘Rocket’ Reed, 81, also toppled a record in the half marathon when he completed the course in three hours, l3 minutes and 13 seconds, becoming the first aged over 80 to finish the race.