80-year-old sprinter Carol LaFayette-Boyd named World Masters Athlete of the Year

For the second time in her career, Carol LaFayette-Boyd of Regina has been named the World Masters Athletics (WMA) Female Athlete of the Year. In 2022, LaFayette-Boyd broke six world records in the W80+ age category (two indoor and four outdoor).

LaFayette-Boyd, 80, first won the award in 2018 after she set the W75+ world record in the 100m, 200m and high jump. To achieve this honor, she bested four other nominees from around the world.

This year she broke outdoor W80+ world records in 100m, 200m, long jump and triple jump, plus recent indoor records in the long jump and 60m dash. She has 17 world age group records to her name. 

To put her astonishing athleticism and talent in perspective, LaFayette-Boyd is running sub-35 seconds 200 meters–at age 80.

Although it’s her second time winning the award, LaFayette-Boyd stays humble about her accomplishments. “It is nice to be recognized, but I can think of others more worthy,” she says.

A retired social worker, LaFayette-Boyd did not start running until her late 40s and didn’t win her first competitive track event until she was 50. The great-grandmother of four has no plans to slow down or hang up her spikes; she plans to continue running for the rest of her life.

When asked about the key to her longevity, LaFayette-Boyd says her passion for staying healthy keeps her training at her best. “I train three times a week with Regina’s Excel Athletika Club, and apart from that, I routinely practice a daily stretching regime.”

She says she is inspired by the women who are competing in the W100+ age category. “I have lots of time to do that,” she says. “This year I would just like to stay healthy and to better my times in all events.”

She will compete for the first time in 2023 at the Regina Indoor Games on Feb. 3-4. 

posted Saturday January 28th
by Marley Dickinson