102-year-old Man Breaks Thai's 100-meter Record
2022-03-03
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1It takes Thai athlete Sawang Janpram 27.08 seconds to run 100 meters.
2That's not bad, given he is 102 years old.
3People know Sawang as the oldest sprinter in Thailand.
4He has run four times in the yearly Thailand Master Athletes Championships.
5At the championship last weekend in the southwestern Samut Songkhram province, he won all the gold medals in the 100-105 years category.
6That is because he has lived longer than any other competitors in that age range.
7"Getting into sports made me strong and well. As well as this, exercising helps improve your appetite so you eat well too,"
8Sawang says when asked about the secret to his long life.
9Sawang walks with his 70-year-old daughter, Siripan, every day.
10He does simple jobs around the house like cleaning the fallen leaves in their garden.
11But the 102-year-old became more active as he prepared for the games.
12He trained two times a day for a week at a local sports center with his daughter.
13"My father always has positive thoughts ... so he is in a great mental health condition.
14In terms of physical health, he has gotten much stronger," Siripan says.
15The training helped. Sawang's time for the 100-meter sprint this year was his fastest ever.
16It is a new Thai record for his age group.
17Usain Bolt, who holds the only current world record, ran 100 meters in 9.58 seconds in 2009.
18As Thailand's society ages, the number of competitors in the senior category has grown, says Viwat Vigrantanoros.
19He is president of Asia Masters Athletics.
20When the Thailand Master Athletes Championships started in 1996, there were only about 300 competitors.
21Today, there are over 2,000 from 35 to 102 years of age.
22"As you can see, everybody who's here to compete has all forgotten about their ages.
23Once they forget about their ages, they are happy," Viwat said.
24I'm Jill Robbins.
1It takes Thai athlete Sawang Janpram 27.08 seconds to run 100 meters. That's not bad, given he is 102 years old. 2People know Sawang as the oldest sprinter in Thailand. He has run four times in the yearly Thailand Master Athletes Championships. 3At the championship last weekend in the southwestern Samut Songkhram province, he won all the gold medals in the 100-105 years category. That is because he has lived longer than any other competitors in that age range. 4"Getting into sports made me strong and well. As well as this, exercising helps improve your appetite so you eat well too," Sawang says when asked about the secret to his long life. 5Sawang walks with his 70-year-old daughter, Siripan, every day. He does simple jobs around the house like cleaning the fallen leaves in their garden. 6But the 102-year-old became more active as he prepared for the games. He trained two times a day for a week at a local sports center with his daughter. 7"My father always has positive thoughts ... so he is in a great mental health condition. In terms of physical health, he has gotten much stronger," Siripan says. 8The training helped. Sawang's time for the 100-meter sprint this year was his fastest ever. It is a new Thai record for his age group. 9Usain Bolt, who holds the only current world record, ran 100 meters in 9.58 seconds in 2009. 10As Thailand's society ages, the number of competitors in the senior category has grown, says Viwat Vigrantanoros. He is president of Asia Masters Athletics. 11When the Thailand Master Athletes Championships started in 1996, there were only about 300 competitors. Today, there are over 2,000 from 35 to 102 years of age. 12"As you can see, everybody who's here to compete has all forgotten about their ages. Once they forget about their ages, they are happy," Viwat said. 13I'm Jill Robbins. 14Juarawee Kittisilpa reported on this story for Reuters. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English. 15___________________________________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17athlete - n. a person who does any kind of physical sports, exercise, or games, especially in competitions 18sprinter - n. a person who takes part in short, fast races. 19appetite - n. desire to eat 20What do you think of the games for elderly people? Is there anything like it where you live? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.