Perth Woman Sets Guinness World Record as Oldest Person to Do a Handstand
A 75-year-old Perth woman has set a Guinness World Record as the oldest person to perform a handstand, smashing the required 15-second hold with an impressive 55 seconds. Esther Fischer's achievement has inspired others to take on the challenge, with her gym introducing a new longevity class.
A Perth woman has turned her life upside down, becoming the world's oldest person to perform a handstand. To break the world record, 75-year-old retiree Esther Fischer had to hold the stance for at least 15 seconds with no assistance.
On August 31, she did not just break the record - she smashed it. "I did 55 seconds, not just 15," she said. "If you Google me, who's the oldest person who can hold a handstand, my name comes up. It's kind of cool."
Ms Fischer said the idea was struck over a coffee with friends, after someone questioned who might have held such a record. Their research told them it was a 74-year-old man from the United States. "The girls said to me, 'Esther, you can do that,'" Ms Fischer said.
Ms Fischer took up her fitness journey later in life. "And I looked at his handstands online on the Guinness Book of Records, and I thought, yeah, I can do that, I think."
Ms Fischer said that while she could already do a handstand, it was not something she mastered overnight. "It took me three years," she said. "It just took ages and ages and ages and one day I hit it. It was unreal."
Her accomplishment has inspired others to take on the challenge. The gym where Ms Fischer has been a member for 10 years introduced a longevity class. Gym owner Jacob Moffitt said the class is about helping people 60 and over get strong. "[It improves] their quality of movement and their quality of life," he said.
"Esther's one of the primary students of that class as well, and that's now attracted probably half a dozen [people] that come along to that class regularly." Mr Moffitt said Ms Fischer is a good example that people can start at any time. "She was never a gymnast, was never an athlete in her youth, she just started at 65 years old or 64, I think and then went from there," he said.
Ms Fischer said she is proud of her accomplishment but is already setting her mind to a new goal. "I'm working on a one-arm [handstand]," she said. "I've been doing that for two years now, and it's very hard. I could be the oldest person to do it, but I don't know whether it's going to work or not."