AILSA CHANG, HOST:
World record-setting sprinter Julia Hawkins died earlier this week. Her records weren't shattered in her 20s or 30s.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Not even in her 80s or 90s.
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JULIA HAWKINS: One of my children suggested, when I was a hundred, that it would be nice to run the hundred-yard dash and do it in less than a hundred seconds. And I did it in a lot less than that.
SUMMERS: A whole lot less than that - 31 seconds. That's Hawkins talking to WWNO about lacing up and smashing the 100-meter dash record for her age group. And five years later, she broke it again in the 105-years-and-up category with 63 seconds.
CHANG: Hawkins was a cyclist for much of her life but lost interest because of the lack of competition. On the track, she was a star, earning the nickname Hurricane from her peers despite not being able to see more than a few feet in front of her.
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HAWKINS: There's something that kicks in that gives you the feeling of wonder kind of and makes you want to get out and go as fast as you can and do the best you can.
SUMMERS: She told CBS she wasn't particularly impressed by her world records.
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HAWKINS: I did many other wonderful things before this. This is just a drop in the bucket.
SUMMERS: An example - she was a garden enthusiast and crossed every finish line with a flower tucked behind her ear.
CHANG: She was a beloved teacher and an inspiration to her students, some of whom turned out to watch her break the 105-and-up record.
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HAWKINS: They were in the fourth grade when I taught them, and now they're 90. So that tells you how old I am.
SUMMERS: She was also the adoring wife to Murray Hawkins and married him in a rather unusual way in 1942.
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HAWKINS: He was in Pearl Harbor when it was bombed. So when they sent him out there, we were married by telephone.
CHANG: They had four children and were married for over 70 years until Murray's death in 2013. In the years since, she proved to her fans, both young and old, that age is not a limit to what's possible.
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HAWKINS: That's what's keeping me going, actually. I think it's a ridiculous thing I'm doing, in a way. But if I'm an example, I'm proud.
SUMMERS: Mother, teacher, gardener and sprinter Julia Hawkins died this week at the age of 108.
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FRANK SINATRA: (Singing) And if you should survive to 105... Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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