Many times people say that age is just a number, but with her achievements, this seasoned swimmer is showing that notion to be true.

Due to her numerous upcoming celebrations, 99-year-old Betty Brussel has been creating ripples on the internet and in the global community.

The competitive swimmer is scheduled to reach 100 years old in 2024, according to CBC, and she just broke three world records.

Brussel takes swimming seriously and devotes herself to the water sport, viewing it as more than just a nice recreational pastime.

‘When I swim, I count my lanes and you can’t think of anything else because you lose count,’ the New Westminster,

British Columbia, resident Brussel stated to The Current while at the Guildford Aquatic Center nearby.

On January 20, 2024, in the 400-meter freestyle, Brussel broke the world record while competing in the 100–104-year-old swimmers’

competition in Victoria. She then beat her own marks in the 50-meter backstroke and 50-meter breaststroke.

Brussel, who was raised in the Netherlands, picked up swimming in Amsterdam’s canals. After that, in 1959,

she relocated to Grand Forks, British Columbia, where she raised her family alongside her pastime of swimming.

However, in her late 60s, Brussel began swimming competitively. She initially took part in the B.C. Seniors Games, now known as the 55+ B.C. Games, at the age of 68.

She laughed and remarked, ‘I did one lane of breaststroke and I didn’t even do it right.’ ‘I had never received any instruction.

I recently picked it up.’ Brussel acknowledged, as reported by BBC World Service, that she is feeling a little ‘overwhelmed from all the attention” she has been receiving lately.

Currently, Brussel visits the pool twice a week as a member of a competitive swimming squad. When she isn’t navigating the waters, Brussel gets outside and walks.

‘Hills surround my home. I move quickly when I go downhill and slowly when I go upwards,’ she said. ‘My kids are always telling me to not go so fast.’

The veteran has reportedly won so many swimming medals that she lost track of them, according to Global News.

In an interview with the publication, Brussel stated, ‘I don’t know where these are from,’ as she examined a few at her kitchen table.

‘Yes, I am a late bloomer,’ Brussel admitted, thinking back to her early years. I used to go for a swim in the canal at seven in the morning before heading to work. It was so cold, man.

That satisfied me quite a bit. That was pleasant. I feel a little smug about that. Carole Gair, the former swimming coach for Brussel, has nothing but praise for her senior pupil.

According to the publication, Gair stated, “Her life’s ambition is to reach the age of 100 and shatter

every record in the 100 to 104 age group.’ But being 99 years old also meant that Brussel had to face her own share of health issues.

The resolute swimmer was not going to let any health issues stop her from doing what she had accomplished, even though she had experienced a heart attack,

broken both feet, a fractured vertebra after a severe fall, and even a shoulder surgery. Brussel remarked,

‘I always go back when I am recovered.’ ‘When I’m 100, I want to swim the 800 meters.’ That is my desired outcome.

Swimming makes me feel my best all the time. When not competing against her fellow swimmers, Brussel enjoys sewing as well. She was previously a seamstress by trade.