A teenage thief thought the old lady she was helping into a car would be easy pickings: just grab her bag and go. What the bag-snatcher didn't know is that this old lady was a 100-yard British national champion in her youth, and she still had some fire left. Mrs. Jean Hirst, a widow and retired teacher, began chasing the thief, who finally gave up the goods.
"Suddenly I felt 18 again. The adrenaline just kicked in and I seemed to turn back the years.
She had a head start but I covered 70 yards in about 15 seconds and was within two strides of her when she looked over her shoulder and saw me...The look on her face was one of sheer amazement and she just threw my bag aside."
Photo via Raymonds Press Agency
From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Marilyn Terrell.
No, she didn't really get arrested.
Gotta love tough old ladies! The world needs more like this.
Mrs Hirst, who has two grown up children, was later rebuked by her daughter who told her the girl could have had a knife or turned aggressive.
She added: "I didn't think of my safety, but I did pay for it a little the next day. I was covered in aches and pains and my daughter turned to me and said it was because I didn't warm up properly."