50-year-old Olympic runner sprints for a new record

VIDEO - Merlene Ottley's appearance in Barcelona made her the oldest person to compete in the championships...

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Fifty-year-old, seven-time Olympic sprinter Merlene Ottey surprised many last week when she appeared at the European championships.

Her appearance in Barcelona made her the oldest person to compete in the championships.

Ottey remains adamant that she will keep running as long as her legs hold up. The big question is—will she compete in London in 2012?

“The bigger the championships the tougher the challenges and for me this will be not just a surprise but a huge miracle if I run in London. It’s possible that we can qualify in the relay next year but it’s hard to tell now how will two years be,” Ottey said.

She has won nine Olympic medals for Jamaica but all of them are silver or bronze.

The immediate target for Ottey is next year’s world championships in South Korea with an eye on the Olympics in London the year after.

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