Age is just a number.... Just ask Te Anau's town folk
“Current inspiration and motivation definitely come from living in this beautiful environment and having a group of similar-aged athletes to train with."
By Lance Smith
Most 70-year-olds are putting their feet up, but not Te Anau’s Gail Kirkman and Warren Green. They are too busy breaking records.
Is past retirement age in the Te Anau water? No. It’s the mountains! Te Anau is blessed with world-famous mountain tracks and trails (e.g. Kepler) and it’s these that encourages and nurtures a love of exercise and fitness.
Fitness that translated to athletics and NZ championships. As Gail says: “Current inspiration and motivation definitely come from living in this beautiful environment and having a group of similar-aged athletes to train with. We are out on the parks, mountains and bush tracks of Fiordland several times every week and feel very fortunate.”
Warren and Gail are not the only Te Anau residents who refuse to act their age. Gail’s husband Gary, Les Scown, nearby Manapouri resident Lester Laughton and Dwight Grieve are prominent in masters athletics and adventure running. Dwight at 45 was in the winning Coast to Coast 3-person team and fourth overall in last year’s Kepler Challenge Grunt for instance.
Both Gail and Warren run and tramp the Fiordland trails in winter and run the occasional crosscountry and road races. The fitness built up over winter is put to good use in summer when athletic activities become shorter, faster and more intense.
At the NZ Masters Champs in Wellington last December Gail broke the national W70 high jump and long hurdles records and set a new meet record in the 800m. She also has a total of 18 NZ records to her name over a number of events and age groups.
Her record breaking also includes world records. One was the W55 400m, set the World Masters Champs in Italy.
“Our son Daniel had come over to Italy from Africa. I did not know he was in the huge international crowd on that finals day but as I came around the bend in the lead with 100m to go and with German and Dutch athletes hot on my heels, I heard a booming Kiwi voice calling out “GO MUM”! He now likes to take credit for that World record.”
Warren’s national record came in the pentathlon, a gruelling competition involving five events – 200m, long jump, javelin, discus and 1500m. He actually had the record set the previous year – in December he upped it. A year older, a year better Even in his seventies!
While Gail was taken to her local athletic club at 7 and competed through high school (James Hargest) she had a twenty plus year break, returning to the sport in her late 30’s.
Warren on the other hand, didn’t start until almost 60 when a coach at his son and daughter’s athletics suggested he join in. He did, going from someone who couldn’t run 400 metres without stopping to NZ records in a multitude of events.
Roger Robinson who represented both England and New Zealand at world cross-country champs many decades ago and is still running in his 80s said: “Those who retire can only look back. By still competing I can look forward.”
Gail and Warren are looking forward. As Gail puts it: “I’ll keep going as well as I can for as long as I can. After all… age is just a number!”