Eastern Ontario 80-year-old man celebrates birthday with half marathon
At 80-years-old, Bill Poole is breaking barriers after running his first half marathon.
Poole finished with a time of 2:49 in an informal race from Mallorytown Landing to downtown Brockville, Ont. on Saturday.
"Maybe less than a year ago, I just had a thought: 'I'd like to try a half marathon when I'm 80.' And Jordan, my son in law, said, 'I'll do it with you,'" Poole said.
Poole celebrated his birthday on Thursday, and wanted to cross this run off his bucket list.
He took up running when he was 65-years-old and started competing in the Canada 55+ Games – running 200 metre, 400 metre, 800 metre and 1500 metre races.
Poole was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2014, which held him from competing. But 10 years after his diagnosis, he was able to complete a half marathon, something he never envisioned at the time.
"Because I didn't do long distances, I'd never done it anywhere close to that before," he said.
Poole has a nonchalant attitude about his running, but his wife, Susan Poole, admires the dedication her husband has.
"He just wanted to do it," she explained with a laugh. "He's very determined, very determined, and a little stubborn."
Now that Poole has crossed the finish line, his next half marathon will be at an organised event in Regina, Sask. with his daughter in September.
"That'll probably be the last," he said with a smile.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
Custom baseball card released of Blue Jays fan struck in the face with foul ball
Liz McGuire, the Blue Jays fan who was struck in the face with a 110 m.p.h. foul ball last week, has been pictured on a custom baseball trading card applauding her fandom to the game.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Pro-Palestinian protesters expected to meet with U of T administration
Pro-Palestinian protesters who have set up an encampment on the University of Toronto campus are expected to meet with school officials today.
Grayson Murray, two-time PGA Tour winner, dead at 30
Two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray died Saturday morning at age 30, one day after he withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Challenge at Colonial.
Are you a loud snorer? You could have sleep apnea
You'll have a lot more energy throughout the day if you get a good night's sleep, but not everyone does due to a medical condition.
Beer Store planning to 'thrive and adapt' as Ontario announces changes to alcohol sales starting this summer
The Beer Store says it is looking forward to the next stage in its “evolution” as the province rolls out an accelerated timeline for expanding retail alcohol sales in Ontario.
Here's what every key witness said at Donald Trump's hush money trial. Closing arguments are coming
After 22 witnesses, including a porn actor, tabloid publisher and White House insiders, testimony is over at Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York.
J.H. Tabaret statue at uOttawa vandalized
The statue of J.H. Tabaret at the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) has been vandalized, as a picture taken by CTV News shows red paint sprayed all over it.