99-Year-Old Breaks 2 Swimming World Records: 'It Was an Exemplary Swim for Me'
A 99-year-old Australian swimmer has broken not one, but two, world records for the 50m and 100m freestyle in his age group.
George Corones, who will be 100 in April, completed the 50m event in 56.12 seconds at an official event in Queensland Wednesday — a new benchmark for the 100-104 age category.
Corones surpassed the previous record, set in 2014, by 35 seconds.
"It was an exemplary swim for me, well balanced... and I was ready to hit the [wall] at the end very hard with my hand,” Corones told the BBC.
The event was reportedly staged just so Corones could challenge the record. He was the only participant. The previous record of 1:31.19 was set by British swimmer John Harrison.
Corones also challenged the 100m freestyle record on Saturday and beat it by a minute, reports said.
The 99-year-old reportedly took up swimming at 80 years old to get some exercise.
"At this age it takes a while to get going... you get exhausted much more easily, but if you do it sensibly, the rewards are astronomical,” Corones said.
He also attributed his success to his pacing and technique.
"My first dozen strokes were well balanced and the trick is to just carry it on progressively, putting a little bit of increasing effort in each stroke,” he told the station.
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