'Sawang, 106, Wins Two Gold Medals at World Masters Athletics Championships'

Wins Gold in Javelin Throw Following Discus Victory
Records 10.04 Meters on First Attempt in the Final
A Total of 80 Gold Medals Won Across Various Competitions

Sawang Janpram, a 106-year-old from Thailand who participated in the Daegu World Masters Athletics Championships, has once again claimed a gold medal.

According to Yonhap News Agency on August 29, Sawang, the oldest participant in the 2026 Daegu World Masters Athletics Championships, secured his second championship title at the event by winning a gold medal in the javelin throw on this day, following his gold in the discus throw on August 27. He competed in the men’s 100-and-over javelin throw division, which took place at the Daegu Stadium auxiliary field at around 5:50 p.m.

106-year-old Thai national Sawang Janpram, the oldest participant in the 2026 Daegu World Masters Athletics Championships, is seen posing for a commemorative photo wearing the gold medal in the javelin throw event at the awards ceremony held at the plaza of Daegu Stadium on the 29th. Photo by Yonhap News

Just like during the discus throw competition, Sawang took to the field wearing brown glasses and comfortable athletic clothing, accompanied again by his daughter and athletics coach, 74-year-old Siripan. When Sawang put all his might into the throw, the crowd of athletes from other age categories broke into applause and cheered him on. The javelin he threw weighed 400g, lighter than the 800g javelins used by elite male athletes in the Olympic Games. However, a tournament official explained that, for an elderly amateur competitor, this is by no means a light weight.

Sawang had no other competitors in the 100-and-over category, so he competed alone, but he maintained a highly focused and disciplined approach to the event. His best record in this competition was 10.04 meters, achieved on his first attempt in the final round. While this did not surpass the world amateur athletics championship record of 12.42 meters for the 100-and-over age group, he had already set a new world record of 7.59 meters in the men’s 100-and-over discus throw (1 kg) on August 27.

Sawang commented, "I am satisfied and happy with the results." Later that day, at around 7:30 p.m., he mounted the podium once more. This ceremony had been specially prepared by the organizing committee in recognition of his status as the oldest participant at the event. A representative of the organizing committee introduced him, noting, "He began exercising at the age of 80 and is currently the only participant over 100 years old in the competition."

106-year-old Thai participant Sawang Janpram, the oldest competitor in the 2026 Daegu World Masters Athletics Championships, is seen throwing a 400g javelin alone in the men's 105+ age category on the 29th at the auxiliary stadium of Daegu Stadium. Photo by Yonhap News.

Sawang began exercising regularly at age 80, and, influenced by his daughter Siripan, herself a Thai masters athletics athlete, entered Masters competitions. Beginning with the 2017 Masters Championships held in China, when he was 97 years old, he has participated in a total of seven Masters events up to this year. In his first appearance, he competed in four events—the men’s 100m M95 (for those aged 95 or older), 3kg shot put, 1kg discus throw, and 400g javelin throw—achieving world No. 1 rankings in the 100m and javelin throw.

At the World Masters Championships in Taiwan last year, he took home gold medals in all four events for the 100-and-over division: 100m, shot put, discus throw, and javelin throw. His record for the 100m was 38.55 seconds. He was then not only the oldest but also the only competitor in the 100-and-over category. With his two gold medals in discus throw and javelin throw in this year's event, Sawang has now amassed a total of 80 medals across various competitions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.