86-year-old Regina swimmer heads to Hawaii training camp

Inspirational athletes are not always the ones who spend every waking hour at the gym, track or pool.

Mary Brown swims two to three times a week and is a role model to many people.

Goes to show that you can keep doing it if you want to.- Mary Brown

The senior swimmer has been competing for nearly 40 years and is still making waves.When Brown was 85, she won a silver medalat an international competition.

Her next big swim event is a training camp this month in Hawaii.

Brown hasbeen swimming with the Regina Masters Swim Club for 39 years. In fact, she's one of the original members.

Recently some of her teammates were making plansto attend a five-day camp and encouraged Brown to sign-up.

Brown says she was hesitant at first. "They just said 'Oh come on Mary, you'll be fine. You don't have to think about your age,'" she said.

Despite being in her 80s, Brown logs a lot of laps each week.

She usually swimsmore than 1,000metres at the pool each practice and says it keeps her healthy.

Brown acknowledges that people are often amazed by her athleticism, but she points out that she sees many men and women at swim meets who are still competing in their 90s.

"Goes to show that you can keep doing it if you want to."