The 91-year-old Italian woman breaks the sprint world record; this is what keeps her healthy at this age

A 91-year-old woman from Italy sprinted a 200-meter run in less than a minute, breaking the world record for her age group and thus breaking the norm of aging. The non-competitive Emma Maria Mazzenga is comfortable, even though her competitors grab the breath. That's what made her so healthy and agile at this age.

200m in just 51 seconds
Last year, Emma completed the 200-meter sprint in 51.47 seconds – 1.5 seconds faster than the previous world record for over 90 entrants. After her record feat, a group of scientists conducted a series of tests on Emma to understand her physiology. They found two main factors that made Emma Fit more important than many people younger than her.

Experts say Emma's heart and lung health, including the efficiency of her heart and lung pumping oxygen to her muscles, is comparable to healthy women in their 40s or 50s.
Additionally, her muscles are unique and perfect for endurance, which means she can travel distance without feeling tired. Emma also has “very high fast fiber” that produces powerful energy – perfect for events like sprints.

Emma returns to running
In an interview with Vogue Italy, Emma was born in 1933 and said she started running while in college. In her youth, her highest achievement was fourth in the National Championships of Rome. But after getting married and having children, she had to put her track and field career in decades. She returned to the sport with her old teammates in 1986.
In the early 1950s, she joined the Masters track and field competition – a fierce competition for older runners – and never looked back since.
“All the expenses are on me, but I'm happy to do that,” Emma told the magazine. “The emotions that race gives me, the adrenaline that every training gives me is the pure energy of my life.”