418:
60:. Competitors are bracketed into five-year age groups (which promotes fair competition). For international events the first age group is 35 to 39. Men as old as 105 and women in their 100s have competed in running, jumping and throwing events. Masters athletes are sometimes known as "veterans" and the European Masters Championships, for instance, is known as "Eurovets". This and other high level events including biennial World Championships cater largely to elite-level athletes, but many masters athletes are novices to athletics and enjoy the camaraderie offered by masters competition at the local, National and International level. Most National governing bodies for track and field hold annual Masters championships. Prestigious National meets such as the
171:(WMA) is the worldwide governing body for Masters athletics. It provides a global standard of rule modifications (based upon the international rules for the sport created by the WMA for athletes of a certain age. Each individual country governs its own affairs with an organizational governing body that is an affiliate to WMA such as Masters Athletics Federation of India (MAFI) in India and Australian Masters Athletics in Australia..
85:
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individual ages from 8 to 100. The only official use of the Age-Graded Tables by WMA is in scoring multi-event competitions. But the Age-Graded Tables have been incorporated into track meet management software by Hy-Tek and others and used to determine age-graded winners in many other competitions, especially road runs.
131:
In
October 1971, Pain and his travel-agent wife, Helen, traveled to London, Munich, Copenhagen and several other European cities to lay the groundwork for a historic masters track tour of Europe, Olson's book recalled. In late-summer 1972, the Pains took 152 mainly U.S. and Canadian masters athletes
349:
A major contribution of masters athletics was the introduction of the Age-Graded Tables, a set of "age factors" and "age standards" that, when multiplied by a time or distance, allow athletes of any age and event to compare their performances with that of any other athlete. According to "Age-Graded
96:
Since at least the early 1930s, middle-aged athletes in Europe, Australia and New
Zealand have competed with younger athletes, especially in cross country and road races. Some were active into their 50s. And on the track, Briton Don Finlay recorded a 14.4-second mark in the 120-yard high hurdles in
100:
In 1966, San Diego civil lawyer David Pain began organizing what he called "masters miles" at indoor and outdoor track meets, and set the minimum age at 40. He and others soon launched the U.S. National
Masters Championships, where everyone 40 and over competed together. The inaugural meet, at San
405:
Website mastersrankings.com started USA Masters rankings in 2006, and World
Masters rankings in 2013. The website provides year be year rankings and meet results. Prior to 2006 other methods were used to create the rankings, the current system provides a more complete and timely data system.
132:
to London, Helsinki, Stockholm, Gothenburg and
Cologne for age-group track meets and distance races—thus jump-starting the worldwide masters track movement. In December 1973, another tour by the Pains, with 51 athletes, traveled to the South Pacific and Oceania for more age-group competitions.
353:
The first official Age-Graded Tables were compiled by WAVA and published by
National Masters News in 1989. Revisions (taking into account improved performances at all ages) were released in 1991, 1994, 2006, 2010 and 2014 (minor revision). The tables can be applied to five-year age groups or
76:) hosts various Masters events including National Championships for Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field and Cross Country. USATF adds the age divisions 30–34 as Sub-Masters, and 25–29 as Pre-Masters to give athletes just past college age more opportunities to compete.
193:
WAVA, as it was known, later changed its name to World
Masters Athletics and continues to be the sport's governing body. WMA has been working to coordinate its outdoor championship schedule with the International Masters Games Association, which holds the multisport
350:
Tables" published by
National Masters News, individual statisticians first devised the tables in the mid-1970s as a way of helping score multi-event competitions for older athletes, such as the decathlon, heptathlon and indoor pentathlon.
182:, Sweden. World masters championships have been held outdoors every two years ever since, and a biennial World Masters Indoor Championships debuted in March 2004 in Sindelfingen, Germany. The most recent outdoor world meet was in 2011 in
68:
put on exhibition events for top masters athletes. Masters athletics is growing
Internationally with over 6000 athletes competing at recent World Championships. World; National and Regional records are maintained for each age group.
361:
in 2006 ran the 100-meter dash in 11.34 seconds at the age of 46. The Age-Graded Tables suggest that performance corresponds to an Open (ages 20–30) equivalent of 10.122. Since the open world record for women is 10.49 (by
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390:(in 2021) added the 25–29 age bracket for the USA National Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championship. Age 30–34 is already competing at the USA National Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championship.
108:
Inspired by these first nationals, participants founded their own masters meets across the United States and into Canada. Also helping light a fire under sedentary seniors was retired Air Force Maj.
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athletic mark was Ben
Levinson's (age 103) 1998 shot put record that was approved by the WAVA (World) Records committee on 1 January 1999 and the USA Masters Record committee on 4 December 1998.
366:
in 1988), Ottey's converted mark seems implausible. In fact, the WMA committee has excluded certain performances as "nonrepresentative", and not used them in designing the Age-Graded Tables.
357:
The tables also show more or less how an older athlete's performance compares with an Open (20–30) athlete's mark. But the tables have been controversial. For example, Jamaican-born Olympian
105:, was held July 19–20, 1968, and attracted 186 competitors. The second U.S. masters nationals, July 3–6, 1969, drew 200 athletes and introduced 10-year age groups for all events.
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of California sets a world record (30.89 seconds) in the M80 age group in the 200-meter dash at the USATF National Masters Championships in 1997 in San Jose, California.
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The first World Masters Championships were held August 11–16, 1975, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Men and women from 32 nations took part. A meeting at the
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In India the Masters Athletics Federation of India conducts National Masters Athletics Championships every year. In the United States, USATF (
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128:" in New Zealand, also is credited with fanning masters flames with his many articles written on the subject in the 1960s.
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This article is about older athletes competing in the sport of athletics. For older athletes in general, see
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saw the election of a steering committee to plan an international governing body for masters track.
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565:"World's oldest competitive sprinter races his way to new world record at the age of 105"
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1949 at age 40, according to the biennial handbook published by World Masters Athletics.
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The World Association of Veteran Athletes was founded August 9, 1977, at the second
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North and Central America and Caribbean Region of World Masters Athletics (NCCMA)
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610:"USA Track & Field | USATF Masters Track and Field Adds 25–29 Age Group"
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567:. Guinness World Records. Guinness World Records. September 23, 2015.
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694:"Bowerman: The man, the legend and the new biography by Kenny Moore"
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186:, California. The most recent Indoor Championships were held in
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instigated development of organizations across South America.
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began March 1975 and have been held every year (except 2020).
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began July 1968 and have been held every year (except 2020).
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369:
1339:
North, Central American and Caribbean Masters Athletics
859:"Inaugural Americas Masters Games coming to Vancouver"
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for athletes of 35 years of age and over organized by
1005:
World Masters Track and Field Outdoor Championship.
474:
List of centenarian masters track and field athletes
413:
38:
Masters Athletics managed by World Masters Athletics
682:
Masters Track and Field: A History by Leonard Olson
479:
List of centenarian masters track and field records
948:USA Masters Track and Field Outdoor Championship.
489:List of United States records in masters athletics
396:began August 1975 in Canada and continue to today.
967:USA Masters Track and Field Indoor Championship.
149:The inaugural Americas Masters Games was held in
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691:
66:United States Olympic Trials (track and field)
1344:South American Association of Master Athletes
1108:
124:, who in 1962 witnessed older people doing "
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1101:
823:Mastershistory World Championships results
494:List of world records in masters athletics
448:United States records in masters athletics
884:"Americas Masters Games | Vancouver 2016"
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433:European Veterans Athletics Championships
83:
14:
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817:: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
658:: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
571:from the original on 25 September 2015
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401:World Masters Track and Field Rankings
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744:from the original on 21 December 2016
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394:World Masters Athletics Championships
370:Masters Track and Field Championships
176:World Masters Athletics Championships
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1391:Masters athletics (track and field)
911:National Masters News, April 1999.
464:USATF Masters Outdoor Championships
376:USATF Masters Outdoor Championships
24:
774:from the original on 30 April 2018
510:Masters Track and Field: A History
500:
469:USATF Masters Indoor Championships
382:USATF Masters Indoor Championships
116:" created a running craze. Former
25:
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1078:Australian Masters Athletics site
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930:Veteran Athletics, Spring 1999.
888:www.americasmastersgames2016.com
704:from the original on 2011-07-29.
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865:from the original on 2016-08-26
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840:from the original on 2019-12-18
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800:from the original on 2014-02-17
664:Masterstrack profile David Pain
616:from the original on 2021-04-09
438:Masters Athletics World Records
163:
112:, a physician whose 1968 book "
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156:The first officially approved
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1:
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455:, one of USA's oldest athlete
1219:United States Championships
692:Bill Gallagher (June 2006).
7:
1396:Age categories in athletics
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40:is a class of the sport of
27:Category of light athletics
10:
1417:
1370:USATF Masters Hall of Fame
1319:European Masters Athletics
507:Olson, Leonard T. (2001).
459:USATF Masters Hall of Fame
135:Former Chilean decathlete
88:Former U.S. Olympic coach
79:
29:
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1334:African Masters Athletics
1329:Oceania Masters Athletics
1306:
1263:
1238:
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424:Sport of athletics portal
190:, Finland in April 2012.
1365:List of masters athletes
1349:Balkan Masters Athletics
768:www.mastersathletics.net
484:List of Masters Athletes
364:Florence Griffith Joyner
1314:World Masters Athletics
1179:European Championships
1067:World Masters Athletics
1053:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
1034:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
1015:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
996:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
977:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
958:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
599:Retrieved Oct. 26, 2020
169:World Masters Athletics
46:World Masters Athletics
18:Masters track and field
1324:Asia Masters Athletics
1088:USATF American Records
921:Retrieved Feb 21, 2021
528:Thomas, Bryan (2011).
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388:USA Track & Field
144:University of Toronto
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74:USA Track & Field
58:cross country running
48:. The events include
1144:World Championships
118:University of Oregon
1251:World Masters Games
764:"Frederico Fischer"
734:"femachi – FEMACHI"
530:"Age is no barrier"
196:World Masters Games
1049:2020-10-08 at the
1030:2020-10-22 at the
1011:2020-10-11 at the
992:2020-12-05 at the
973:2020-10-09 at the
954:2020-10-10 at the
936:2021-02-13 at the
917:2016-04-24 at the
719:2008-10-12 at the
678:2011-06-09 at the
595:2021-09-09 at the
590:WMA World Records.
198:every four years.
153:, Canada in 2016.
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1124:Masters athletics
542:978-0-9803191-1-8
520:978-0-7864-5056-5
345:Age-graded tables
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110:Kenneth H. Cooper
16:(Redirected from
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892:the original
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54:road running
37:
36:
32:Senior sport
1307:Federations
158:centenarian
62:Penn Relays
1385:Categories
1193:Non-Stadia
1158:Non-Stadia
1043:Rankings.
898:2016-08-28
869:2016-08-28
844:2019-09-12
804:2013-12-29
645:2009-12-06
620:2021-06-11
551:References
184:Sacramento
180:Gothenburg
1183:Athletics
1148:Athletics
1025:Rankings.
188:Jyväskylä
151:Vancouver
42:athletics
1358:Athletes
1047:Archived
1028:Archived
1009:Archived
990:Archived
971:Archived
952:Archived
934:Archived
915:Archived
863:Archived
838:Archived
834:"» IMGA"
813:cite web
798:Archived
778:30 April
772:Archived
748:30 April
742:Archived
717:Archived
702:Archived
676:Archived
654:cite web
614:Archived
593:Archived
569:Archived
410:See also
114:Aerobics
101:Diego's
64:and the
1264:Records
1223:Outdoor
1210:Oceania
126:jogging
80:History
1283:Europe
1228:Indoor
1188:Indoor
1175:Balkan
1165:Africa
1153:Indoor
539:
517:
336:
267:
120:coach
1293:Italy
1271:World
1239:Games
533:(PDF)
332:W 105
329:W 100
276:Women
263:M 105
260:M 100
1170:Asia
819:link
780:2018
750:2018
660:link
577:2015
537:ISBN
515:ISBN
326:W 95
323:W 90
320:W 85
317:W 80
314:W 75
311:W 70
304:W 65
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298:W 55
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286:W 35
257:M 95
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251:M 85
248:M 80
245:M 75
242:M 70
235:M 65
232:M 60
229:M 55
226:M 50
223:M 45
220:M 40
217:M 35
56:and
207:Men
178:in
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