103-Year-Old Germaine Smith Runs First Half Marathon

Wisconsin's Germaine Smith, 103, started the Fox Cities Half Marathon in a wheelchair and finished on foot in 2:04:40, a debut at 103.

Over the weekend, 103-year-old Germaine Smith completed her very first half-marathon, the Community First Fox Cities Half Marathon in Menasha, Wisconsin, finishing in 2:04:40. According to Canadian Running Magazine, Smith started the race in her wheelchair and finished on foot, averaging a pace of 5:54 per kilometre. She raced as a member of myTEAM TRIUMPH, an organization that supports people of differing abilities in athletic events, and her finish drew celebration as one of the standout stories of the event.

The half-marathon drew approximately 1,500 participants, while the marathon included around 720 runners, Canadian Running Magazine reports. The event began on Friday with a kids' run, followed by a 5K and 10K on Saturday and the marathon and half-marathon on Sunday. The same weekend also produced another first: Canadian Running reports that 12-year-old Urban Wilhelms completed his debut marathon in 5:54, racing with his mother Ashley, who was running her first-ever marathon after the pair trained together all summer.

Canadian Running Magazine also highlights Toronto's 102-year-old Atter Singh Sekhon, who competed at the Canadian Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships in March and won the 50m, 60m, 200m and shot put as the only competitor in the men's 100+ category. Born in 1924 and an immigrant from India to Canada in 1988, Sekhon lives in Toronto's Rexdale community.

Smith's debut arrives as organized running keeps widening access through groups like myTEAM TRIUMPH, which pairs athletes of differing abilities with guides so events like the Fox Cities Half Marathon remain open to everyone. Meanwhile, runners following the mainstream calendar can watch the New York City Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 1, which kicks off on Staten Island at 8 a.m. on its 50th-anniversary five-borough course, Gothamist reports.