Hidekichi Miyazaki

Hidekichi Miyazaki (September 22, 1910 – January 23, 2019) was a Japanese centenarian masters athlete in sprinting, affectionally nicknamed Golden Bolt, a name play on Jamaican sprinter and footballer Usain Bolt. He was a former official holder of the world record in the M100 100 metres.

Hidekichi Miyazaki
Personal information
Born(1910-09-22)September 22, 1910
Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture Japan
DiedJanuary 23, 2019(2019-01-23) (aged 108)
OccupationMasters Athlete (M100 and M105 age divisions)
Sport
Country Japan
SportSprinting
Event(s)Held in Kyoto on September 15 2015.

On September 23, 2015, the day after his 105th birthday, he became the second person to compete in the 105 year age division[1] following Pole Stanisław Kowalski who competed earlier in the year on June 28.[2]

Miyazazi died on January 23, 2019, from a cerebral haemorrhage at the age of 108.[3][4]

Biography

Masters event

The event held in Kyoto was held in commemoration of "Respect for the Aged Day (held every September 15), with official timing and a field of younger competitors in their eighties, Miyazaki completed the race in 42.22, slower than the 34.50 recorded by Kowalski. Miyazaki only took up the sport in his nineties. "I'm still a beginner, you know. I'll have to train harder. Training was going splendidly, so I had set myself a target of 35 seconds. I can still go faster." Following his race he posed in the Lightning Bolt stance, made famous by Usain Bolt. "I will say this: I'm proud of my health. The doctors gave me a medical examination a couple of days ago and I'm fit as a fiddle. My brain might not be the sharpest but physically I'm tip-top. I've never had any health problems. The doctors are amazed by me. I can definitely keep on running for another two or three years. It's all about willpower. You have to keep going".[5]

Prior to 2015, the title of "World's Oldest Athlete" was held by American John Whittemore, who did throwing events at age 104 and 10 months in Santa Barbara in 2004. The oldest female athlete was Australian Ruth Frith, mother of Olympian Helen Frith, who was throwing all implements of the throws pentathlon at age 101.

Five years earlier, October 3, 2010, on the same track, Miyazaki had set the record in the M100 division at 29.83, which is the mark ratified by World Masters Athletics, the world governing body for athletics over age 35.[6]

American Donald Pellmann, had just 3 days earlier surpassed Miyazaki's M100 record, running 26.99 in a race in San Diego. In that meet, Pellmann became the first centenarian to record a successful long jump and high jump. Pellmann also attempted a pole vault.[7]

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References
  1. "Japan's Hidekichi Miyazaki Sets Fresh Record as Oldest Competitive Sprinter - NBC News". nbcnews.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  2. "Witaj na stronie startowej". pzwla.eu. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  3. 世界最高齢スプリンター、宮崎秀吉さん死去108歳 (in Japanese)
  4. "Japan's centenarian sprinter Miyazaki 'Golden Bolt' dies at 108". AFP.com. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
  5. "Japan's 'Golden Bolt' sets 100m world record in centenarian race - Yahoo Sports". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  6. "Records Outdoor Men". world-masters-athletics.org. Archived from the original on 2011-09-03. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  7. "The New York Times". nytimes.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
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