Never Too Old: Libby James, A Woman of Her Time

Never Too Old, directed by Stash Wislocki and Patty J. Arndt of Tiny Empire Media, has been selected as a finalist in the 22nd MY HERO International Film Festival. The short film tells the story of Elizabeth Ann “Libby” James, a record-breaking runner who discovered her passion for the sport at the age of 35 and went on to hold six US records and four world records.

Libby James

LibbyStashOver her career, Libby challenged expectations and helped change attitudes towards older women in competitive running. She continued racing until 2020, when she retired at the age of 83, with six US records and four world records to her name.

Running for herself

Libby’s running journey began while she was raising four children who were close together in age. Life at home was busy, and she found that getting up early for a run gave her some much-needed time for herself.

“I think I started running for my mental health rather than anything,” she explains in the film. She would run a mile before returning home to make breakfast and get the children ready for school. What began as a simple way to find some breathing space soon developed into something much bigger.

Libby decided she wanted to run the Boston Marathon, but at the time, there were no qualifying specifications for women over 40. Rather than accept the situation, she wrote to race organiser Will Cloney to ask why.

“What have you got against old ladies?” she asked.

Cloney replied that he would accept her qualifying time of 3 hours, 29 minutes and 47 seconds, provided she met the required three-and-a-half-hour limit.

Newspaper1Libby earned her place in the race and believes her efforts helped pave the way for a women's division for older runners. Says Libby, “I take credit for getting a women's division in the over 40 In terms of world records.”

In the film Libby’s daughter explains how surprised she was at the time Libby achieved for a 10-mile race in Denver: “I was like, how'd you do? And she told me the time. I was like, mom, that's a gotta be a world record. She was like, oh, don't I, I was like, I gotta call the race director.”

The record was confirmed. Cliff Bosley, race director of the Bolder Boulder 10K in Colorado, explains in the film that Libby has recorded 25 of the race’s top 20 all-time age-group times across different categories.

Libby’s achievements continued for decades. At 76, she ran the Disney Half Marathon in Florida in 1 hour, 45 minutes and 52 seconds -  setting a world record there and beating it by almost 10 minutes.

In 2012, her age-graded performances placed her at the top of the world rankings.

Her success has not always been properly recognised. In the film, her daughter recalls occasions when people assumed that a fast time recorded under her name must belong to a man, or that her name had been entered incorrectly.

Her daughter explains, “Quite a few times people would say: ‘Women can't run that fast. It's not Libby James. It must be James Libby, right in her age group. And I said, mom, you gotta call a race director and correct that. And she's like, why? …she goes, I don't care. I go, you don't care. But there are people all over looking at you and they care and you're setting the mark for women coming up behind you!”

Her six US records and four world records represent more than personal milestones. They demonstrate what older women can achieve and help challenge assumptions about age and athletic ability.

Libby eventually retired from competitive racing in 2020, aged 83. Although she no longer competes, her achievements continue to encourage others to take up the sport.

It's never too late to start

For Libby, running remains refreshingly straightforward. You do not need expensive equipment or a complicated plan to begin.

run 2a“Running is very simple. It’s elemental,” she says. “It comes to people naturally, I think. All you need, she explains, is a decent pair of shoes, a T-shirt and shorts, with warmer clothing when the weather demands it."

Libby started running at 35 to get a little time to herself while raising four children. She went on to have a racing career that lasted almost five decades, retiring at 83 with six US records and four world records still to her name. Never Too Old tells her story and shows that you don't have to start young to find your talent – or to surprise yourself with what you can achieve.

About Stash Wislocki, Cinematographer & Producer

Some of Stash’s credits include HBO, PBS, Independent Lens, The New York Times, ESPN, ITVS, Spotify, Little Monster Films, National Geographic, Patagonia, Apple. He is a fellow at the Tribeca Film Institute, sits on the Woods Hole Research Center Presidents Counsel and is a visiting artist for Film Aid International.

MY HERO interviewed Stash about the making of Never Too Old:

How did you first hear about Libby James, and what made you want to tell her story?

I came to Libby through Patty Jen Arndt, my co-director, who’s part of Libby’s extended family.  What hooked me was the gap between what she’d done and how few people knew about it. Here was a woman who at one point held more running records than Flo-Jo and Usain Bolt combined, and I’d never heard her name. That gap felt like the story.

Was there anything you discovered about Libby during filming that surprised you?

How late she started: she began at 35, running a mile a day just to clear her head while raising four kids, and didn’t race until her 40s; also how little fuss she makes about the records.

Libby has six US records and four world records, yet many people have never heard of her. Why do you think her achievements have received so little attention?

Part of it is structural. Older age groups just don’t get the coverage, and sometimes not even the bookkeeping. Libby herself didn’t always know when she’d set a record; it was her daughter who realized that one of her 10-mile results was a world record. Part of it is that age-graded performance is hard to explain in a headline. When she ran a 1:45 half marathon at 76, it ranked as the best age-graded performance of the year for any runner, of any age or gender. That’s extraordinary, but it doesn’t read that way unless you know how to read it. And part of it is Libby. She’s humble, funny, and genuinely not interested in being famous. The film’s tagline is that you can be almost famous and still lead a fulfilling life, and I think she’d agree that’s the better deal.

What was it like filming Libby and hearing her talk about her running career? Was there a particular moment that stayed with you?

It was really her no-nonsense personality. You get the feeling you’re dealing with a person who is a force of nature.

You’ve worked on a wide range of documentary projects. What drew you to this particular story, and how did you approach telling it in a short film?

With five minutes, you can’t tell a whole life, so the job is choosing one clear idea and letting everything serve it. For us, that idea was the contrast: a world-class athlete hiding in plain sight, and a person who’s at peace with that.

What do you think makes Libby a hero? Do you have any particular heroes?

Libby’s a hero to me because she never treated age as a stopping point. She started when most people assume the window has closed, and kept getting better well past the point where people expect to slow down. And her legacy isn’t really the records. It’s that her kids and grandkids run with her; she’s done a Thanksgiving race with sixteen relatives. That’s influence that goes beyond a results page. 

About Tiny Empire Media

Tiny Empire Media is a content studio and film production company based in Telluride, Colorado. It makes commercials, brand films, music videos, documentaries, installations and experiential films, drawing on more than twenty years of production and post-production experience, including shoots in remote locations worldwide. Its work spans high fashion, brand advertising and documentary, and its clients include HBO, Samsung, PBS, The New York Times, ESPN, Spotify, National Geographic, Patagonia and Apple.

Find out more: www.tinyempire.tv

About MY HERO International Film Festival

Now in its 22nd year, the MY HERO International Film Festival continues to celebrate both unsung and well-known heroes whose stories of resilience and hope inspire a global learning community. This unique festival unites professional and youth filmmakers who use their craft to drive positive change in the world.

Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, prizes are awarded across multiple categories—including documentary, narrative, music video, animation, experimental, and more - recognizing outstanding work from elementary, middle school, high school, college, and professional filmmakers.

To view all of the 2025 award-winning films, go to: /films/winners2025

For more details about MY HERO's International Film Festival, please visit: myhero.com/FilmFestival