101 Year Old Japanese Swimmer Breaks 1500 Record - Underwater Audio

Talk about an attention grabbing headline. No, your eyes have not deceived you. A 101 year old woman has broken the record for swimming the 1500!
 

About Mieko

Mieko Nagaoka has become the world’s first centenarian to complete a 1500-metre freestyle swim, 20 years after she took up the sport.
It took Mieko just under an hour and 16 minutes to finish the race as the sole competitor in the 100-104-year-old category at a short course pool in Ehime, western Japan, on the weekend.
 

Instant Fame

This achievement will land her in the Guinness Book of World Records. The amazing part about all this, is she didn’t even start swimming until she was 80 years old!
She completed her first 1500 meter race in an Olympic sized pool at age 99 and last year she even released a book called “I’m 100 Years Old and the World’s Best Active Swimmer.”
 

What is Took to Get Her Here

This accomplishment did not come without intense training. Meiko remains a dedicated swimmer, training four times a week, for two hours at a time. Most people half her age don’t (or can’t) do that. Which is why it’s so inspiring. After winning the race, she said “I want to swim until I turn 105 if I can live that long.”
Hiroki Nagaoka, her son, summed it up perfectly when he said “She is some woman. The world first means no one has done it. It was awesome that my mother has challenged and accomplished her goal at her age. She still uses her brain and tries to figure out the best way to swim, she still even tries to change her swimming form to challenge for a record. I’m really proud of her.”
 

Tell Us!

Perhaps we should send her a Waterproof iPod Shuffle as a congratulatory present! She sure have earned it.
What do you think about this story?! Does it fascinate you? Motivate or inspire you? Let us know in the comment section below.