Stories of Amazing Accomplishments by Older People

When it comes to tough marathon swims, the Cuba-to-Florida crossing has to be near the top of the list. Not only does it span more than 100 miles, but the balmy conditions also attract dangerous sea creatures such as box jellyfish and sharks.

What makes the accomplishment even more amazing is that Nyad had attempted the swim before, back when she was in her late 20s. Then, she tried it four more times after turning 60, ahead of finally completing the task in under 53 hours at the start of September 2013.

While the vast majority of men are retired by the age of 60 in China, Wang Deshun had no interest in slowing down. He made his debut on a fashion runway at 79 years young, showcasing his incredible physique. It’s easy to understand why he was dubbed “China’s hottest grandpa!”

With a background in art and acting, Deshun was already a talented individual before becoming a model. The daily routine he followed to stay in shape — mentally and physically — is sure to inspire many entering their twilight years.

As a professional musician, Harriette Thompson spent much of her life sitting behind a piano, playing at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall. But when she hit her mid-70s, she changed things up in a major way.

After beating the disease, Thompson kept running, and it ultimately led to a historic moment. At the 2015 San Diego event she became the oldest woman to ever complete a marathon at 92 years and 93 days old. Her time was equally impressive: the nonagenarian crossed the finish line in a little under seven-and-a-half hours!

It didn’t take long for Johanna Quaas to find her calling. Born in 1925 in Germany, she got into gymnastics at a young age, and she made her competitive debut at the age of ten. From there, she moved into a coaching role, balancing that alongside her time as a handball player.

In 2012 Guinness World Records recognized Quaas as the “oldest active competitive gymnast” in the world: she was 86 at the time. The athlete didn’t stop there, either. She was still performing well into her 90s and only retired due to a biceps injury in 2018.

Who says it’s ever too late to start living authentically? Take Patricia Davies, who came out as transgender at 90 years old and began taking female hormones in 2016 after seeing her physician.

Doing something about it was a different matter, though. Davies said, “The atmosphere [around being transgender] was not safe. Even the medical profession didn’t understand it, as the treatment was to give you the ‘electric shock treatment.’” So she continued to live her life as Peter, spending time in the armed forces and getting married as a 21-year-old.

Triathlons are no joke. They are seriously physically demanding, but that has never deterred Sister Madonna Buder, who is a fierce triathlon competitor in her nineties! The former Catholic nun is known as the “Iron Nun,” and she’s been embracing the sport for four decades. In fact, she only made her triathlon debut at the age of 52!

Sister Buder caught the running bug and went on to compete in around 400 triathlon competitions! When she was 82, the Iron Nun became the oldest woman ever to complete an Ironman Triathlon.

Climbing Mount Everest in your prime would be daunting enough, but imagine trying it once you hit retirement age. Surely it can’t be done? Well, Yuichiro Miura overcame those odds in stunning style.

Then, after losing that record some three years later, Miura bagged it again in 2008. Now, what made that even more astonishing is that the guy had undergone two separate heart operations in 2006 and 2007! But he wasn’t done there.

Known for their incredible speed, Formula 1 cars are a real sight to behold when they’re driven to the limit. And while the F1 Championship itself is very much a young man’s game, that didn’t stop Rosemary Smith from getting her chance to shine behind the wheel.

But in 2017 Smith made an awesome bit of history. Renault asked her to test-drive one of its vehicles just outside Marseilles, France. By accepting the invitation and taking to the track, at 79 years of age she was recognized as the oldest person to ever sit behind the wheel of an F1 race car.

When Lou Battori first took to the ski slopes as a bright-eyed ten-year-old boy, would he have believed that he’d still be doing the same thing aged 100? We’re not so sure! Yet he didn’t look out of place while sliding down the snowy hills in 2011 as a centenarian.

Battori was a character. During an interview with CBS News in March 2011 he said, “I have been often asked, ‘What ski school have [you] attended?’ And you know what my answer is? ‘What flying school did the Wright brothers attend?’” Quite simply, ski schools didn’t exist when he was younger!

There are few workout routines more vigorous and demanding than CrossFit. But that didn’t put off Jacinto Bonilla when he took it up as a 67-year-old in 2006. Once he got going, the dude was a natural, fitting right in with everyone else.

Even though his physicians advised against it, Bonilla’s love affair with CrossFit continued. He hasn’t looked back since. In addition to the other routines, he’s forged his own one as well: it’s called the “Jacinto Storm.”

It’s fair to say that Rut Linnéa Ingegärd Larsson has lived quite a life. She was born in 1918 and has gone on to build a massive family: the centenarian has five kids, 19 grandchildren, and roughly 30 great-grandchildren! 

Larsson marked her 90th by going paragliding, and she hasn’t looked back since. But the great-grandparent didn’t rush into parachuting, instead waiting until she turned 102! From there, she went on to set a new world record in May 2022.

From a young age, Texan William Ivy became absolutely enthralled with the art of tightrope walking. That love of the death-defying stunt eventually informed his decision to leave the family home as a teen in the 1870s and enroll in a circus.

Yet Baldwin’s most audacious stunts took place above South Boulder Creek in Colorado. Over the course of four decades, he crossed that vast space on a tightrope suspended 582 feet off the ground, not once, but more than 80 times! Baldwin wanted to do it again for his 82nd birthday in July 1948, only for his daughter to lay down a condition.

After getting her start as a dancer at New York’s Apollo Theater, Jacqueline “Tajah” Murdock went on quite the journey. She started a family with her husband, only for their relationship to break down. Then, following their split, she got a job at New York University.

When she was in her 70s, Murdock randomly bumped into fashion blogger Ari Seth Cohen on the street. As she recalled to the website Fashionista, “[He] said, ‘Miss, can I take your picture?’ This happens to me quite often, and I said, ‘For what?’

Ida Keeling had a pretty tough start to life, including a childhood blighted by the Great Depression and failing to bag her college diploma. Sadly, it didn’t get any easier when she became a parent: she tragically lost two sons over a two-year stretch.

Keeling eventually switched her focus to shorter distances at the age of 92, and it led to great success. Cheryl “Shelley” Keeling, her daughter, informed Runner’s World, “Every race she ran, she set a record because no one else was there. There’s a reason no one was there; they didn’t believe they could, and she did. And that’s why she was the first person over 100 to run the 100 meters.”

Dr. John B. Goodenough was partially responsible for inventing the rechargeable battery that’s found in cell phones and tablets today. He brought his creation to life within the walls of the University of Oxford back in 1980.

But in 2019 Dr. Goodenough’s incredible efforts were recognized in a major way: he won a Nobel Prize for his contribution at the age of 97. The professor was the oldest person to ever take home the accolade!

If you thought skateboarding was purely a young person’s sport, Jerome Defraitus has proved otherwise. At the grand old age of 97, he was still pulling off tricks with his trusty board! He got his start back in 1931 before finding real success some four years later.

Defraitus’ talents did land him in trouble on occasion. During a trip to Venezuela, he was sent to jail for a week thanks to skateboarding! It didn’t deter him, though.

Tao Porchon-Lynch was first introduced to yoga when she was just eight years old, kicking off a love affair that spanned nearly a century. She fully embraced the practice alongside a host of other interests.

Yet Porchon-Lynch’s exploits in yoga were arguably her greatest achievements. She became a teacher and continued to run classes after turning 100 in New York. Guinness World Records subsequently recognized her as the oldest yoga instructor in the world.

Given the toll that it takes on the body, most ballet dancers burn out by the time they hit their 30s. But Suzelle Poole was a remarkable exception. She was still performing as a ballerina going into her 80s!

Eventually, Poole settled in Dallas, Texas, where she joined the Royale Ballet Dance Academy as a teacher. She managed to balance that alongside her on-stage performances. The ballerina was even asked to speak and dance at a TEDx Talk in 2019!

If you’re still looking for love in your twilight years, know this: it’s never too late. Take George and Doreen Kirby as an example. The couple celebrated their wedding when they were 103 and 91, respectively!

Yet it took another 25 years until George finally popped the question on Valentine’s Day in 2015. Doreen gleefully accepted his proposal, and the big day was penciled in for June that year.

For most people, college is the last stop on the academic train before entering the world of work. In Nola Ochs’ case, though, she completed her studies at a very different time in her life. She graduated at the age of 95 in 2007!

What made it even better was that she graduated with her granddaughter at the same time! In addition to the diploma, the nonagenarian also broke the record as the world’s oldest college graduate.