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<\/p>\nMany times people say that age is just a number, but with her achievements, this seasoned swimmer is showing that notion to be true. <\/p>\n
Due to her numerous upcoming celebrations, 99-year-old Betty Brussel has been creating ripples on the internet and in the global community. <\/p>\n
The competitive swimmer is scheduled to reach 100 years old in 2024, according to CBC, and she just broke three world records. <\/p>\n
Brussel takes swimming seriously and devotes herself to the water sport, viewing it as more than just a nice recreational pastime.<\/p>\n
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\u2018When I swim, I count my lanes and you can’t think of anything else because you lose count,\u2019 the New Westminster, <\/p>\n
British Columbia, resident Brussel stated to The Current while at the Guildford Aquatic Center nearby. <\/p>\n
On January 20, 2024, in the 400-meter freestyle, Brussel broke the world record while competing in the 100\u2013104-year-old swimmers’ <\/p>\n
competition in Victoria. She then beat her own marks in the 50-meter backstroke and 50-meter breaststroke.<\/p>\n
Brussel, who was raised in the Netherlands, picked up swimming in Amsterdam’s canals. After that, in 1959, <\/p>\n
she relocated to Grand Forks, British Columbia, where she raised her family alongside her pastime of swimming. <\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
She laughed and remarked, \u2018I did one lane of breaststroke and I didn’t even do it right.\u2019 \u2018I had never received any instruction. <\/p>\n
I recently picked it up.\u2019 Brussel acknowledged, as reported by BBC World Service, that she is feeling a little \u2018overwhelmed from all the attention” she has been receiving lately.<\/p>\n
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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. <\/p>\n
\u2018Hills surround my home. I move quickly when I go downhill and slowly when I go upwards,\u2019 she said. \u2018My kids are always telling me to not go so fast.\u2019<\/p>\n
The veteran has reportedly won so many swimming medals that she lost track of them, according to Global News. <\/p>\n
In an interview with the publication, Brussel stated, \u2018I don’t know where these are from,\u2019 as she examined a few at her kitchen table.<\/p>\n
\u2018Yes, I am a late bloomer,\u2019 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. <\/p>\n
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. <\/p>\n
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According to the publication, Gair stated, “Her life’s ambition is to reach the age of 100 and shatter <\/p>\n
every record in the 100 to 104 age group.\u2019 But being 99 years old also meant that Brussel had to face her own share of health issues.<\/p>\n
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, <\/p>\n
broken both feet, a fractured vertebra after a severe fall, and even a shoulder surgery. Brussel remarked, <\/p>\n
\u2018I always go back when I am recovered.\u2019 \u2018When I’m 100, I want to swim the 800 meters.\u2019 That is my desired outcome. <\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n