You can call Michelle Rohl "the fastest woman alive"! Rohl, a 58-year-old former Olympian, proved her Olympic days weren't over quite yet. She participated in the U.S. Olympics' Team trials, finishing third in a race walking event! It was a 20,000-kilometer race walking event in Springfield, Oregon, and Rohl finished with a time of 1:42:17.
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Rohl retired from Olympic racing over 20 years ago. The three-time Olympian competed in 1992, 1996, and 2000. (The farthest she got was a 10K walk in 1996, finishing at 14th.)
"Wait, did you say race walking? That's not even running! What kind of joke sport is that?" Oh, my sweet summer child. You have no idea! Let's see what The Philadelphia Inquirer has to say about Rohl's race walking trials and tribulations!
"Rohl trains seven days a week, runs 45 miles a week, race walks with an 8-minute pace, suffered a concussion last year, and powers through nagging knee pain."
But that's not all! While training for the event, Rohl took a heck of a bump. "Rohl didn't notice a dip in the road, tripped, and crashed to the asphalt. Her chin busted open, and blood soaked her shirt." You know what she did? She got back up and finished the race -- her concerned husband be darned!
"She said, 'Do you think this is going to scar?'" said Michelle's husband, Michael Rohl. "I said, 'Yeah, it's going to scar, but that's okay because glory is forever, and guys dig scars.' I've never known anyone who is as mentally tough as her. She likes to run, she likes to compete, and it's a lifestyle for both of us. It makes her happy, and I'm just happy to be along for the ride."
A Grandmother Defies The Odds And Finishes Third During Olympic Trials
We often call older people "brave" for doing things we feel they shouldn't. Typically, if it's something centered around physicality, we inherently dismiss people past a certain age. "You're old. You're frail. A light breeze could knock you over and dislocate your hip."
But it's the older people who are more physically active and fit than people in their 20s! I know for a fact if I had fallen during training today, I would've stayed on the ground and accepted the telltale sign that the race wasn't meant for me. Do the darn thing, Rohl!
