Jeannie Rice

Jeannie Rice
Born (1948-04-14) April 14, 1948
South Korea
CitizenshipUnited States
Known forHighest ever recorded VO2 max for a woman 75 or above

Jeannie Rice (born April 14, 1948) is an American runner, known for her short finish times at an advanced age. She holds multiple marathon world records in her age division. Her unusually robust physiology has drawn the attention of medical researchers, who found that she had the highest VO2 max for a woman 75 or above ever recorded.

Early life

Rice was born on April 14, 1948,[1][2] in South Korea.[3] She immigrated to Mentor, Ohio when she was 18[4] or 19[5] to go to nursing school.[4] She was a real estate agent by trade, and managed to sell 27 homes in her first year.[5] She has since semi-retired.[6]

Running

Rice began running at age 35 to lose weight gained on a vacation back in her native South Korea. She was inspired to take up marathon running in particular by Joan Benoit's gold medal performance at the 1984 Olympics. She began with the Cleveland Marathon in 1983, running a 3:45.[7]

In 2016, she estimated that she had run 1,000 races.[5] She began setting world records in 2018, when she was 70 years old.[8] This was around the time she began attracting attention in the running community.[2] By 2019, she held the world records for the Akron Marathon and Akron Half Marathon for women 70+ years of age, posting 3:27:50 and 1:37:07.[9] In 2023, she became a World Marathon Majors six-star finisher.[1] She had completed 134 marathons by 2025,[10] placing first multiple times in her age category of 70+.[1] She has surpassed all male competitors of her age group in a marathon five times.[4]

In a 2025 study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, her VO2 max was recorded at 47.8, the highest ever recorded for a woman aged 75 or older, and her max heart rate at 180 beats per minute.[11] For reference, such a VO2 max is average for a 25-year-old woman.[10] The study also noted that with times of 3:24:48 and 3:33:27, Rice holds world records for the marathon in the W70 marathon world record progression 70-74 and W75 marathon world record progression 75-79 year women age group categories.[8] Conversely, her running economy was found to be unremarkable.[8]

As of 2025, she is the fastest woman (aged 75 to 79) worldwide in the 1500m, 5km or 10km.[4]

Personal life

Rice was married but divorced due to her husband's lack of support for her running.[4] Rice is a mother of two sons. She has grandchildren. In addition to running, she skis.[5] She is a snowbird,[1] spending time in both Cleveland, Ohio and Naples, Florida.[10] Throughout the course of her running career, she has suffered only one injury. She consistently runs 50 miles (80 km) per week.[8]

Rice is a lifelong pescetarian and says "I eat a lot of rice."[4]

She was present at the 2013 Boston Marathon, and was near the bombing.[12]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Dickinson, Marley (April 20, 2023). "75-year-old woman runs 3:33 at Boston Marathon". Canadian Running Magazine. Retrieved June 4, 2025. Three days after her 75th birthday, Jeannie Rice of Mentor, Ohio, added the women's 75+ age group world marathon record to her impressive resume [...]
  2. ^ a b Butler, Sarah Lorge (April 19, 2023). "At Age 75, Jeannie Rice Runs 3:33 at Boston Marathon". Runner's World. Retrieved June 4, 2025. On April 17, Rice, a few days after her 75th birthday, ran 3:33:15 at the Boston Marathon.
  3. ^ Weller, Don (September 23, 2024). "How Jeannie Rice Became The World's Best Masters Marathoner - Interview". Marathon Handbook. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rumbelow, Helen (April 23, 2025). "She's the world's fastest 77-year-old". The Times. Archived from the original on April 23, 2025. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  5. ^ a b c d "Most Interesting People 2016: Jeannie Rice". Cleveland Magazine. December 21, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  6. ^ Cyr, Paul (April 20, 2025). "Is it a myth that seniors need to slow down their fitness routines?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 21, 2025.
  7. ^ "The golden girl getting faster". World Marathon Majors. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
  8. ^ a b c d "At Age 76, Jeannie Rice Just Keeps Running Fast. Now, Scientists Finally Know Why". Runner's World. March 25, 2025. Retrieved May 30, 2025.
  9. ^ Hoppe, Stephanie (September 3, 2019). "Advice for Runners of All Ages From a 71-Year-Old World-Record Holder". Women's Running. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  10. ^ a b c Cimons, Marlene (April 20, 2025). "At 77, she's as fit as a 25-year-old. What her body tells us about aging". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  11. ^ Van Hooren, Bas; Balamouti, Zoi; Zanini, Michele (2025). "A case report of the female world record holder from 1,500 m to the marathon in the 75+ age category". Journal of Applied Physiology. 138 (2): 603–611. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00974.2024. ISSN 8750-7587. PMID 39855643.
  12. ^ Tarpley, Tiffany (April 15, 2014). "Local runner remembers Boston bombings". WKYC Studios. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
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