By Sean Griffin on SwimSwam
60-year-old Olympic legend Mary T. Meagher, now known as Mary Plant, is back to breaking world records.
The American swimming legend retired from swimming after the 1988 Olympic Games, but has returned to swimming in the masters realm in recent months.
Just minutes ago at the SPMS SW Zone LCM Championships in Mission Viejo, California, Plant threw down a new masters World Record in the women’s 60-64 200 butterfly. She stopped the clock with a time of 2:39.31, which eclipsed Laura Val‘s former mark of 2:41.03 from August 2011. Val is one of the most decorated masters swimmers of all-time, having broken nearly 450 world records during her masters career so far.
Plant negative split each 100, recording 36.62 on the first 50 and 36.59 on the second 50. She closed with splits of 44.10 and 42.00, respectively. She won her heat by 2.40 seconds and her age group by 1 minute and 36.97 seconds.
This was only her fourth officially-recorded meet since her return to racing.
Her most recent competition was the Augusta Blue Tides Dog Days of Summer Masters Meet on August 15, where she won the 50 fly (31.27), 100 fly (1:09.59), and 200 fly (2:45.99).
At the Rose Bowl Masters competition in March, she recorded times of 28.34, 1:04.03, and 2:29.84 in the yards versions of those races, but those swims were her first recorded long course swims since retiring from professional swimming.
Earlier that month at the Ski-n-Swim meet, she swam 42.52 in the 50-yard free in her first meet, back, and then a week later swam 28.34 in the 50-yard fly, 1:04.03 in the 100-yard fly, and 2:29.48 in the 200-yard fly. That 50 fly time was just 1.33 seconds off the USMS National Record for the 60-64 age group that was set by Ellen Reynolds earlier this year.
During her professional career, Plant won five Olympic medals, including golds in the 100 fly, 200 fly, and 400 medley relay at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She accumulated nine World Championship medals as well, two of which were gold. She held the World Record in the 100-meter fly from 1980 until 1999 and the 200 fly from 1979 until 2000, setting those records when she was 15 and 14, respectively.
Her 200 fly time of 2:05.96 from 1981 remains the U.S. National Age Group Record in that event 44 years later, one of the oldest records on the books.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: Mary T. Meagher Sets Masters World Record In 60-64 200 Butterfly
