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Jeanne Little has enjoyed swimming for much of her life.
Little, who is 86 years old and lives in the Reata Glen retirement community in South Orange County, got started in masters swimming around 40 years ago.
“I knew how to swim. I didn’t know I’d be a good swimmer,” Little said. “That came fairly quickly and I was hooked.”
Little’s passion paid off when she received two gold medals in the U.S. Masters Swimming Spring Swim meet in Irvine, held this past April. She won first-place recognitions for the 50 and 100-freestyle in the 85 to 89-year-old age group.
“I’ve done quite a bit of local swim meets and national swim meets,” she said.
The Irvine competition was a large meet, from Little’s perspective. Her age group doesn’t tend to have as many participants as other age brackets because swimmers may gradually drop out as they get older, she said.
“Even when I was younger and competing with many, many more people, I did quite well,” Little said. “I had some national championships and local championships. This swim meet, I had about five other competitors. One of them beat me and the rest of the swims I won.”
Little also won two silver medals and a bronze.
Little got to do relay races, which she called a “lot of fun.”
“You build camaraderie and it’s kind of exciting to get up there on the block and go off,” she said.
Getting to participate in the Irvine meet was thrilling for Little as she doesn’t work out as strenuously as she used to.
“I was quite thrilled to win,” she said. “At a big meet like that, even though I’m only competing in my small age group, it’s an exciting thing to be part of a national swim championship. There’s so many interesting people and fast races to watch.”
Swimming has always felt good for Little and not an activity she’s had to grind through.
“It’s easy. It’s comfortable to me,” she said. “I enjoy the competition, but I think, most of all, I’ve enjoyed the other swimmers—being at a meet with them or working out with them. It’s quite an unusual connection. It’s been a really good part of my social life for many years.”
Little is looking forward to other upcoming local swim meets.
She initially got into swimming when she was 10 years old.
“I had polio when I was 6 or 7, and have a curvature in my spine from that,” Little said. “It was suggested that swimming would be a good sport for me. I did start swimming locally in Iowa, where I lived.”
She was part of a small swimming team that initially consisted of her sisters.
“Unfortunately, in those days, women were not allowed to swim in high school or college,” Little said. “I really kind of quit swimming through high school and college. I did get back into it in my 40s.”
Little said she remains active.
“I play bridge,” she said. “I do some charity work and so forth, but swimming is still No. 1.”
