Tonight Johanna Quaas, a 92-year-old gymnast who still competes around the globe with gymnasts 20 years younger than her, will show off her inspiring talents on NBC’s Big Little Shots: Forever Young.
Quaas was born in Saxony Germany in 1925, and started training as a gymnast when she was 10. When the country outlawed individual sports in favor of team sports, she had to stop gymnastics for a while and play handball instead. In 1947 the ban on gymnastics was lifted and Quaas was able to resume her life’s passion competitively.
Here’s a video of Johanna training:
Johanna competing in 2012
“I don’t take any pills now and have no illnesses,” she says of her health. “The only time I have a slight cold is when I am in Singapore as the air-conditioning is so strong.”
She trains for an hour every day and makes sure to eat lots of fruits and vegetables. “If you are fit, it is easier to master life,” Johanna noted to the Straits Times earlier this year.
Quaas actually took a 20 year break from the sport, but started training again in 1982 at age 57. Since that moment, she’s never looked back.
“My proudest moment so far was when I was 84 years old and there was no one in my age group competing in the championships,” she said. “So they put me with the others in the 70-75 age group and I still won by one point.”
