58-year-old grandmother selected for Olympic race walking team

A Pennsylvania grandmother will compete in the Olympics in a sport she once retired from.

Michelle Rolle, a long-distance runner turned race walker from Wisconsin, competed for the U.S. Olympic teams in 1992, 1996 and 2000 but retired from sports more than 20 years ago to home-school her five children. morning Call report.

The 58-year-old Rolle, whose first grandchild was born just three months ago, made a furious return to competition, competing in the 20km race walk at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials on Saturday, June 29, and qualifying.

According to the Pennsylvania newspaper, Michelle completed the walk in Springfield, Oregon, in just over one hour and 42 minutes, placing third overall.

It wasn't easy: Michelle, who finished 20th in the 1992 Olympics, 14th in 1996 and 17th in 2000, trained every day, running a total of 45 miles a week at a pace of eight minutes per mile, she said. morning Call.

She's also weathered some injuries. Last year, Michelle stumbled and hit her head on a curb late in a race, giving her a concussion, and then three weeks ago she broke her jaw during a race in Toronto.

But with the Olympic Trials looming, she didn't give up. “I just said, 'I've got to get up and keep going,'” the athlete told the newspaper. “I'm really glad it's over. It would have been a lot more rewarding if I hadn't spent those last two laps just trying to get up and keep going.”

talk morning Call“I've never known anyone as mentally strong as she was,” said Michelle's husband, Michael Roll.

Michael, 59, added: “She loves to run, she loves to compete and it's a lifestyle that we both share. She's happy with it and I'm happy to be a part of it.”

Though her “retirement” from race walking is over, Michelle said she has no regrets about taking the time away from the track to teach the kids, now aged 33 to 18.

“My middle daughter said, 'Mom, you were a really good athlete and then you had a baby,'” she said. morning Call“And then we all grew up and you became great athletes again, and I think that's why we were there.”

However, Michelle said she “wanted to take a break from the sport,” adding, “I was ready to take a break and I wanted to get that part out of my life.”

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She was the oldest athlete competing at the Olympic trials on Saturday, but she said her grandmother never expected her to perform as well as she did decades ago. morning Call.

But Michelle, who set the American record in the women's mile last year, is now competing in the Olympics. now — Thanks to Michael and her whole family for their support.

“I told her, 'You have to do this, because maybe it will inspire other people to keep doing it,'” Michael says. “'Who's doing this? The answer is no one else is doing it, so just go do it, do it because you can and have fun.'”

To learn more about all of the athletes hopefuls to compete in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, visit TeamUSA.com. Also, check out PEOPLE.com for ongoing coverage before, during and after the Games. You can watch the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, starting July 26, on NBC and Peacock.