American masters runner Betty Lindberg is nothing short of amazing. On Thursday morning, the 99-year-old was the oldest finisher at the annual AJC Peachtree 10K Road Race in Atlanta, held annually on U.S. Independence Day, completing it in three hours and eight minutes.
99 YEARS OLD AND STILL GOING STRONG 💪
Betty Lindberg has crossed yet another AJC Peachtree Road Race finish line with her family and continues to make history ✨
📸 Paul Ward pic.twitter.com/O2cWv058BM
— AJC Peachtree Road Race (@ajcprr) July 4, 2024
Lindberg didn’t start running until she was 63, and she has run the AJC Peachtree 10K Road Race 35 times in the last 36 years. Although her running days are behind her, she now goes for what she calls “quick strolls” around her neighbourhood.
The women’s 90+ division at this year’s AJC Peachtree 10K was deep, with Lindberg finishing fourth out of five runners in her age group. She completed the race alongside her son Craig, who is 68, her grandson Eric, and various other family members.
97-year-old woman surprised after breaking age-group 5K world record
Lindberg has many American masters running accolades to her name, including the American W95+ 5K record: 59 minutes and six seconds. She held the world record for the age category until Canada’s own Rejeanne Fairhead set a new 5K record at the 2023 Ottawa Race Weekend, smashing Lindberg’s time by eight minutes (51:09).
The winners of Thursday’s AJC Peachtree 10K Road Race were Kenya’s Sebastian SaweSebastian Sawe and Stacy Ndiwa. Sawe is the defending world half marathon champion and is the top-ranked road runner in the world, according to World Athletics. He broke the tape in Atlanta in a time of 28 minutes and three seconds.
