After setting five short course Masters World Records in late April at the 2019 Swim Ontario Masters Provincial Championships, 95-year old Kalis Rasmussen was at it again last weekend, putting her name on three long-course records for the 95-99 age group.
The Etobicoke Olympium Masters Aquatic Club’s Long Course Masters Warm Up meet provided the venue for Rasmussen’s standout efforts.
The latest records to fall at Rasmussen’s hands – the 50 breast (1:38.21), 100 breast (3:47.12) and 200 breast (7:42.36), as she claimed gold in each event. According to Swim4LifeMagazine in Italy, the 50 breast record bested Japan’s Naka Fukuoka‘s mark of 1:44.41 from November 2018. In the 100 and 200 breast, Rasmussen topped the records set in 2017 by American Charlotte Sanddal of 4:37.87 and 9:18.96.
Earlier this spring, Rasmussen notched records in the 50 back (1:17.82), 100 back (2:42.13), 200 back (5:42.83), the 50 breast (1:32.51) and 200 breast (7:22.30) on the short course stage.
The Denmark native, who relocated to Canada in 1951, has been swimming competitively since 2000, when she was 76. She competed at the 2017 FINA Masters World Championships in 2017, winning the 100 and 200 breast and posting runnerup finishes in the 50, 100 and 200 back in the 90-94 age division.
All total, Rasmussen has her name on 20 Canadian national records in the 85-89 and 90-94 age groups. That doesn’t even count the eight Masters World Records she has set this year at age 95.
Rasmussen was not the only record breaker at the Masters Warm Up as Terri MacDougall set a new standard in the 200 breast (2:53.14) for women age 55-59.
Kalis was a contemporary conpetitive swimmer to the great Ragnhild Hevner . Ragnild 4 years her senior won silver in the 400 at Berlin & went on to WR in the 200 400 800 & 1500 freestyle plus 200 back ..
Amazingly she took the 400 wr from 5.16 to .6 over the 5.00 mark that had only been broken 3 years after she was born by the one & only Tarzan . Such a short time between men & women when we think Ledecky’s 40 was cool . These records stood for 20 years until a generation of swimmers who grew up never having lived in war appeared.
Ragnhild was likely a N** i & banned by… Read more »
7:42 for a 200 breaststroke? That sounds so painful props to Hershey must have an iron will
Not certain if I would be healthy enough to swim a 200 breaststroke at 95. I think what she did was great swimming. Macdougall in the 55 to 59 age group is an insane time.