On Sunday, when 50,000 runners compete in the London Marathon, onlookers may see a few more grey (or purple, see above) hairs peeping out from beneath the caps and beanies.
The number of female runners aged 50 and beyond who completed the event has climbed by 65 percent during 2018. It also coincides with a 91% increase in the number of female runners aged 60 to 69 who have registered to compete, demographic shift organizers say will be difficult to ignore.
Older female runners aged 50 to 70 are our fastest-growing demographic,” stated the event director, Hugh Brasher.
“The demographic shift has generated an atmosphere that is a sea of positivity, where finishing times are only one of several motives for participation.”
In 2020, when the race was run virtually due to the Covid epidemic, the number of men and women who participated was equal for the first time. Brasher speculated that many of them ladies may have been older runners who felt confident enough to attempt the marathon for the first time when it was conducted in obscurity. And now they are participating in the actual event.
Sunday, 60-year-old Kate Neale will run the marathon, followed by the Dublin marathon one month later. In 2018, she ran her first 26.2-mile race in Brighton, followed by Belfast the following year.
“I began running at age 47 because I wanted a cheap and quick way to clear my mind,” she added. The majority of novices in my local running club are women, and more of them are in their 40s and older than they were when I first started running.
Brasher attributes the surge of older female runners to a mix of events, with Paula Radcliffe’s historic completion of the London Marathon in 2003 being the earliest.
“Many women who now run in their 50s began running in their 30s because Radcliffe persuaded them to believe it was feasible,” he said.
Stuart Lewis, the founder of Rest Less, a digital community and advocate for those in their 50s and 60s, attributed the growth to longer and healthier lifespans: He stated that today’s 50- and 60-year-olds are more physically strong and healthier than ever before.
The editor of Women’s Running, Esther Newman, was not shocked by the surge in the number of older women participating in the marathon.
Above sixty percent of her readership is over the age of 45, with nearly four percent between the ages of 65 and 74. “The proportion of women who run marathons is increasing,” she noted, citing the 2018 Cardiff half marathon where more women than males registered. “More women are running ultramarathons now that they realize they are capable of doing so.
“Women in their 40s and 50s are taking up running because they have a variety of conflicting responsibilities, including career, family, and more,” she explained. “This demographic does not necessarily begin running to lose weight or maintain fitness.
They’re beginning because they realize it’s the most effective approach to take time for yourself. You focus solely on breathing and putting one foot in front of the other while running. It is contemplative. It’s all about mindfulness.”
She said, “There are now hundreds of running organizations for women that encourage women to run regardless of whatever apprehensions they may have about running in an urban setting, jogging for the first time, or running at night.
All of this makes running more accessible to women than ever before, and the sport’s longevity means that women who begin running can continue well into their 50s and beyond.
Jane Jaffe, age 69, will also compete in the marathon this weekend. Jaffe began running at age 50; on Sunday, she will complete her 27th marathon and 15th in London.
“At every race I do, I see an increasing number of older ladies,” she remarked. “It is a fact that older individuals are becoming younger. I plan to continue running for many more years with my daughter and one of my grandsons.
