Surrounded by Marathon Medals, an 83-Year-Old Dreams of Paris

French runner Barbara Humbert, 83, long-distance world record winner in her category who dreams to run the Olympic Marathon For All at the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games, poses during a daily practice session in Villiers-Adam near Paris, France April 26, 2023. (Reuters)
French runner Barbara Humbert, 83, long-distance world record winner in her category who dreams to run the Olympic Marathon For All at the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games, poses during a daily practice session in Villiers-Adam near Paris, France April 26, 2023. (Reuters)
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Surrounded by Marathon Medals, an 83-Year-Old Dreams of Paris

French runner Barbara Humbert, 83, long-distance world record winner in her category who dreams to run the Olympic Marathon For All at the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games, poses during a daily practice session in Villiers-Adam near Paris, France April 26, 2023. (Reuters)
French runner Barbara Humbert, 83, long-distance world record winner in her category who dreams to run the Olympic Marathon For All at the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games, poses during a daily practice session in Villiers-Adam near Paris, France April 26, 2023. (Reuters)

At 83, Barbara Humbert dreams of taking part in next year's Paris Olympic Games “Marathon For All”, a race opening the Olympic route to non-elite competitors for the first time - and she's got the pedigree to beat some runners half her age.

Not your typical great-grandmother, the German-born Frenchwoman runs 50 km (30 miles) a week, has competed in dozens of marathons, and has the medals to show for it.

"It's extraordinary to have the Olympics in Paris," said Humbert at her home in Eaubonne, an hour's drive north of the capital. "It would be a gift for my 60th marathon," she added. "For me it would be a crowning achievement."

That's far from certain, as the number of race bibs is limited to 20,024, to be chosen in a random draw.

Husband Jacques, her biggest supporter, is helping where he can, and waiting for a response from the sports ministry to a request to reserve a bib for his wife. The ministry was not immediately available for comment.

Dozens of medals hang in the entrance of their home.

They remind Barbara of all the races she's been part of, from Athens to Boston and beyond, amounting to some 8,000 km run, according to her own calculations.

More than 40 years after she first started racing, last year Humbert beat a world record in her category during the French athletics championships, by running 125 km in 24 hours.

How did she do it? By training a lot, and being careful with her diet, she said, encouraging others to follow in her footsteps.

"It gives you a balance. You run, you empty your head, you feel so much better afterwards."

And she's not planning to stop anytime soon. "As long as my joints don't cry out in pain, I will keep running!"



‘Worse than I Thought’: Hamilton Endures Difficult Ferrari Debut

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
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‘Worse than I Thought’: Hamilton Endures Difficult Ferrari Debut

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 16, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in action during warm up. (Reuters)

Lewis Hamilton said Sunday he found his new Ferrari "really, really hard to drive" in the wet as the seven-time world champion endured a difficult start to his career at the Scuderia.

The 40-year-old is hoping for a new lease of life after his bombshell switch from Mercedes, but it has been a steep learning curve since he joined the Italian team in January.

It culminated in a disappointing 10th in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, where he was well off the pace of McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes and behind teammate Charles Leclerc in a rain-hit race, punctuated by safety cars.

"It was very tricky and went a lot worse than I thought it would go. The car was really, really hard to drive today," he said after a race that was marred by a series of crashes in the treacherous conditions.

"For me, I'm just grateful I kept it out of the wall because that's where it wanted to go most of the time."

Hamilton was in the Ferrari not only for his first Grand Prix, but also for the first time in wet conditions.

Clearly still getting used to how his new team works, he was heard on the radio at one time telling his race engineer they had "missed a big opportunity" to capitalize strategically after he led briefly during a series of pit stops under the safety car.

A delayed switch back to intermediate rain tires dropped him back down the field, but the Briton said afterwards there had been "a lot" to take from his debut.

"Just getting acclimatized with the new power unit in the wet conditions," he said.

"The settings it requires are different, and a different way of driving and a different set-up on the steering wheel.

"I hung out as long as I could, got in the lead at one point. Just the guidance with how much more rain was coming, was missing there, so I think we missed out."