# 1985 World Masters Athletics Championships

41°56′02″N 12°27′17″E﻿ / ﻿41.933886°N 12.454786°E﻿ / 41.933886; 12.454786﻿ (Stadio Olimpico)
1985 World Masters Athletics Championships is the sixth in a series of World Masters Athletics Outdoor Championships (called World Veterans Games or World Masters Games at the time) that took place in Rome, Italy, from June 22 to 30, 1985.
The main venue was Stadio Olimpico located within the Foro Italico sports complex.
Stadio Olimpico had hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics. Supplemental venues included Stadio dei Marmi, also located within the complex, $^{:18}$ $^{:185}$ Stadio Acqua Acetosa and Stadio della Farnesina. $^{:1}$
This edition of masters athletics Championships had a minimum age limit of 35 years for women and 40 years for men.
The governing body of this series is World Association of Veteran Athletes (WAVA). WAVA was formed during meeting at the inaugural edition of this series at Toronto in 1975, then officially founded during the second edition in 1977, then renamed as World Masters Athletics (WMA) at the Brisbane Championships in 2001.
$^{:56}$
This Championships was organized by WAVA in coordination with a Local Organising Committee (LOC) headed by Cesare Beccalli,
who later was elected WAVA president on December 2, 1987 in Melbourne. $^{:14}$$^{:18}$ $^{:50}$ $^{:181}$
In addition to a full range of track and field events,
non-stadia events included 8K Cross Country, 10K Race Walk (women), 20K Race Walk (men), and Marathon. The relays were resurrected as official events after being removed in the 1983 Championships, $^{:11}$
but teams were formed by region rather than by nation. $^{:15}$ $^{:43}$ Relays will revert to national teams for 1987. $^{:25}$

## Controversy

In 1976, the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) had expelled the Amateur Athletic Union of South Africa due to the apartheid policy of the South African government at that time,
though the WAVA constitution as written in 1977 specifically stated its independence from IAAF regarding this issue: $^{:167}$
   no competitor be barred because of race, religion, ethnic background, or national origin.
Nevertheless, participation of South African athletes had been an issue in this series. At this Championships, about 48 South Africans competed, though they signed up through another nation, $^{:18}$ in a manner similar to the last 2 Championships in 1981 $^{:21}$ and 1983, $^{:18}$$^{:21}$ However, many of these athletes were listed under their native RSA flag in the results.

## Results

Past Championships results are archived at WMA.
Additional archives are available from Museum of Masters Track & Field
as a pdf book,
as a searchable pdf,
and in pdf newsletters from National Masters News.
The pdf book includes a rare photograph of the blind sprinter Fritz Assmy next to his son/guide. $^{:8}$ The August newsletter shows a series of photographs of Assmy in action, guided by his son with a short wrist tether. Assmy won golds in M70 100m and 200m, and silver in 400m. $^{:20}$$^{:22}$ He described his running technique in the June newsletter. $^{:16}$
Several masters world records were set at this Championships. World records for 1985 are from the Museum of Masters Track & Field searchable pdf unless otherwise noted.

### Women

| Event | Athlete(s) | Nationality | Performance |
| W60 400 Meters | Paula Schneiderhan$^{:21}$ | FRG | 1:12.24 |
| W70 400 Meters | Winifred Reid$^{:24}$ | RSA | 1:19:74 |
| W45 800 Meters | Godelieve Roggeman$^{:21}$ | BEL | 2:18.52 |
| W60 800 Meters | Erika Werner$^{:25}$ | FRG | 2:59.52 |
| W65 800 Meters | Lenore Marvin$^{:24}$ | CAN | 3:17.IB |
| W70 800 Meters | Johanna Luther$^{:21}$ | FRG | 3:19.03 |
| W35 1500 Meters | Joyce Smith | GBR | 4:12.0 |
| W45 1500 Meters | Godelieve Roggeman$^{:21}$ | BEL | 4:43.84 |
| W40 5000 Meters | Gabriela Andersen-Schiess$^{:21}$$^{:22}$$^{:25}$ | USA | 16:44.28 |
| W45 5000 Meters | Anne Marie Grüner$^{:21}$ | FRG | 17:41.24 |
| W55 5000 Meters | Jean Albury$^{:21}$ | AUS | 19:20.60 |
| W65 5000 Meters | Lenore Marvin$^{:24}$ | CAN | 23:31.70 |
| W45 10000 Meters | Anne Marie Grüner$^{:21}$ | FRG | 36:41.04 |
| W55 10000 Meters | Jean Albury$^{:21}$ | AUS | 40:29.8 |
| W55 High Jump | Christiane Wippersteg$^{:25}$ | FRG | 1.30 |
| W60 High Jump | Kirsten Hveem$^{:24}$$^{:25}$ | NOR | 1.25 |
| W75 High Jump | Bertha Hielscher | FRG | 1.08 |
| W40 Long Jump | Ciska Jansen$^{:24}$ | NED | 5.90 |
| W65 Long Jump | Elizabeth Haule$^{:21}$ | FRG | 3.41 |
| W50 Shot Put | Odette Domingos$^{:24}$ | BRA | 12.82 |
| W50 Discus Throw | Odette Domingos$^{:24}$$^{:38}$ | BRA | 43.64 |
| W60 Javelin Throw | Ada Turci$^{:25}$ | ITA | 26.22 |
| W40 5K Race Walk | Lillian Millen$^{:24}$$^{:25}$ | GBR | 25:23.2 |
| W70 10K Race Walk | Francine Bonnans$^{:25}$ | FRA | 1:11:59 |

### Men

| Event | Athlete(s) | Nationality | Performance |
| M50 200 Meters | Ron Taylor$^{:21}$ | GBR | 23.15 |
| M45 400 Meters | James Burnett$^{:21}$ | USA | 50.46 |
| M50 400 Meters | Ingo Vierk$^{:22}$ | FRG | 52.24 |
| M60 400 Meters | Frank Evans$^{:21}$ | NZL | 58.11 |
| M60 800 Meters | Frank Evans$^{:21}$ | NZL | 2:14.02 |
| M65 1500 Meters | John Gilmour$^{:22}$ | AUS | 4:49.16 |
| M65 5000 Meters | John Gilmour$^{:22}$ | AUS | 17:25.3 |
| M70 80 Meters Hurdles | Teófilo Colón | PUR | 13.52 |
| M60 400 Meters Hurdles | Frans Buys$^{:23}$ | NED | 1:05.36 |
| M50 5K Race Walk | Abdon Pamich$^{:25}$ | ITA | 23:22.2 |
| M55 5K Race Walk | Louis Marquisr$^{:23}$ | SUI | 24:25.2 |
| M50 20K Race Walk | Maurice Hinton$^{:25}$ | NZL | 1:41.37 |
| M55 20K Race Walk | Louis Marquisr$^{:23}$ | SUI | 1:44:44 |
| M65 High Jump | Hans Bitter$^{:23}$ | FRG | 1.55 |
| M70 High Jump | Ian Hume$^{:21}$ | CAN | 1.43 |
| M70 Triple Jump | Ian Hume$^{:21}$ | CAN | 10.17 |
| M75 Triple Jump | Gulab Singh$^{:24}$ | IND | 8.98 |
| M70 Shot Put | Voitto Elo$^{:24}$ | FIN | 14.05 |
| M85 Hammer Throw | Friederich Bender | FRG | 27.30 |
| M50 Javelin Throw | Josef Kopitar$^{:25}$ | YUG | 61.94 |
| M75 Pole Vault | Ahti Pajunen | FIN | 2.50 |