On Nov. 30, Canada and the province of Alberta misplaced a influential member of the operating group with the dying of 11-time Canadian masters document holder Helena “Helly” Visser of Calgary. She died on the age of 89.

Born in Hilversum, The Netherlands, in 1934, Visser got here to Canada in her youth. Her operating journey started after her three youngsters left house to pursue their schooling. With time on her arms, she found a ardour for pushing her limits and embraced the outside.

In 1995, she formally entered aggressive occasions for Canada, profitable gold within the W60 1,500m on the WAVA (now WMA) meet. Over time, Visser achieved exceptional success in her age group, setting three world masters age group data and 11 Canadian masters data throughout center distances from 800m to three,000m (indoor and out of doors).

Visser competed on the masters stage provincially, nationally, and in quite a few world championships. Notably, she nonetheless holds three world masters data within the W80 class for the 1,500m, mile and three,000m occasions. Moreover, she boasts quite a few Alberta provincial masters data, acquired a number of honours as Athletics Alberta Masters Athlete of the 12 months, and was inducted into the Canadian Masters Athletics Corridor of Fame in 2010.

80-year outdated Roger Davis and 81-year outdated Helly Visser simply ran the mile right here on the @RunningRoom Indoor Video games pic.twitter.com/20syYXNI2V

— Mark Connolly (@MarkConnollyCBC) March 13, 2016

Past her athletic accomplishments, Visser performed an lively function in selling the game inside Calgary’s group. She organized native operating clinics and helped advocate for the development of an indoor observe and area home.

Competing on the masters stage till the age of 85 in 2019, Visser served as an inspiration to many runners. Her love for steady studying and her dedication to enchancment by way of shared experiences made her a cherished determine within the operating group.

In reminiscence of Visser and her love for the outside, a tree will likely be planted within the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Space in Calgary’s Fish Creek group.