It is little wonder that his doctors have described him as a medical miracle. At 105, Hidekichi Miyazaki – AKA the Golden Bolt – has become the world’s oldest competitive sprinter, breaking his own 100m record into the bargain at an athletics meeting this week.
While Miyazaki’s time of 42.22 seconds earned him a place in Guinness World Records as the fastest man in the world in the over-105 age group, for him the feat was tinged with disappointment.
“I wanted to shave off a few more seconds, as I ran it in 36 seconds during training,” Miyazaki told reporters after the competition in Kyoto.
But the sprinter, who weighs just 42kg (six and a half stone), can take comfort in the knowledge that his world 100m record for centenarians of 29.83 seconds remains intact. Miyazaki celebrated his accomplishment by striking the “lightning” pose associated with the Jamaican Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt.
Miyazaki, who was in his mid-30s when the second world war ended, said he had taken up running at the age of 90 to fill the time he once spent playing Go, a Japanese board game, with friends who had since died.
The secrets of his longevity and incredible fitness levels, he said, were daily exercise and eating in moderation.
“The doctors are all surprised. It’s all about being in good health,” said Miyazaki, who had celebrated his 105th birthday the day before the race. “The doctors gave me a medical examination a couple of days ago and I’m fit as a fiddle,” he told AFP.
“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.”
Japan’s demographics suggest that future contests between the country’s centenarian sprinters could be crowded affairs.
Japanese women live an average of 86.3 years, putting them at the top of the global longevity table last year, while Japanese men were in fourth place with an average lifespan of 80.5 years.
Just over a quarter of Japan’s 126 million people are 65 or over, according to the most recent census, and the proportion is expected to grow to about 40% by the middle of the century.
To mark Respect for the Aged Day this week, the internal affairs ministry said the number of people in Japan aged 100 or over exceeded 60,000. In addition, the population of over-80s had topped 10 million for the first time.
While Bolt put to rest speculation that he is past his best with victories in the 100m and 200m at last month’s world athletics championships in Beijing, Miyazaki, too, believes his best is yet to come.
“I can’t think about retiring,” said Miyazaki, who will compete in the Japanese masters championships next month. “I have to continue for a few more years, to show my gratitude to my fans.”
