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'I look forward to it' Parkrunner hits 250 milestone - at age of 97
The Guardian
|August 27, 2025
When Grace Chambers ran her first parkrun, it was the result of a dare. Nine years later, aged 97, she has reached the sought-after milestone of 250 runs.
Chambers first took part after her daughter Michele registered her for the free weekly timed events, which take place in parks and public spaces around the world.
Chambers had been a keen climber, but after leg surgery in 2016 doctors signed her off from climbing that summer. "I was incensed," Chambers said. But her daughter told her: "Mum, sure you could do a wee parkrun instead," and dared her to complete one before her birthday.
She went along to her first run, in Ormeau Park, Belfast, on 17 September that year - and she hasn't looked back. "My daughter registered me and got me my card and off I went," she said.
This story is from the August 27, 2025 edition of The Guardian.
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