What happened : On Saturday, Julia ‘Hurricane’ Hawkins, a 105 year-old, became the first female track and field athlete and the first American to establish a world record in the 100-meter dash for her age group (105+ division) at the 2021 Louisiana Senior Games. Details: The retired teacher has a long history of athletic success. When she reached 80, she began competing in the National Senior Games, specializing in cycling time trials, where she won multiple gold medals. She eventually retired from cycling, stating that, “There wasn’t anyone left my age to compete with.” She began sprinting when she turned 100. She established the world record for women over the age of 100 in the 100m in 2017, with a time of 39:62. Hawkins opted to compete in a new age group after her record was beaten by Diane Friedman in September. The track star finished the 100 metres in 1:02:95, with a fresh flower in her hair and a crowd of applauding loved ones surrounding her.
What else: Hawkins went on to say that her loved ones, including her four daughters and her late husband of 70 years, who died at the age of 96, are always there for her. “He died ahead of me, and so I think of him as being my little angel out there watching over me,” she said, adding that during Saturday’s race she “felt right at home.”