Winter Olympics: Claudia Pechstein becomes oldest female competitor at 49

German speed skater Claudia Pechstein became the oldest woman to compete at a Winter Olympics.

Aged 49, Pechstein took to the ice in the women’s 3000m speed skating event at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

The previous women’s age record was held by Anne Abernathy, a luger from the US Virgin Islands who was 48 during Salt Lake 2002.

For Pechstein to break the overall age record, she would have to keep competing until at least 2034.

According to Olympedia.org, the oldest Winter Olympic participant is Carl August Kronlund, who was 58 when he earned a silver curling medal at the first ever Games in 1924.

Pechstein also became the second athlete – and only woman – to compete in eight Winter Olympics. This would have been her ninth Winter Olympics, but she missed out on Vancouver 2010 due to a blood doping ban.

She shares the record with Japanese ski jumper Noriaki Kasai, who competed at his eighth Games at PyeongChang 2018.

Pechstein finished last in the 20-strong field, and witnessed her own Olympic record being broken by Dutch skater Irene Schoten.

Back at Salt Lake 2002, Pechstein won the 3000m in 3min 57.70secs. Schoten beat this time by 0.77 seconds today, winning a gold medal as she did so.

Francesca Lollobrigida of Italy was the silver medallist, while Canada’s Isabelle Weidemann finished with bronze.

What a moment for Irene Schouten