🏒 The twists and turns of life are better on skates

Linda Sinrod has dedicated her life to the ice. But, if you asked a college-aged version of herself, she probably wouldn't have guessed things would turn out that way.

The Virginian woman was a figure skater during her time in school, but hung up her skates seemingly for good upon graduation.

It wasn’t until Linda was 35 and visited a frozen pond to casually skate that someone asked her if she wanted to play a round of ice hockey – and she was hooked for good.

• Linda fell in love with hockey, and spent the next few years mastering the sport as much as she could.
• At 37, she helped found the first women’s ice hockey team in Washington DC, on which she played for ten years before "retiring" before her 50th birthday. 

🥅 Again, however – Linda's retirement didn't last. Though she took a long break from the sport, she eventually decided to come back to it at 67.

• "I missed playing and saw that a former teammate was coaching the Prince William Wildcats," she said. "So, I decided to join the team, even though she warned me that I was too old. Everyone else on the team was at least 20 years younger."

She ended up holding her own with the young'uns for quite a while – but like the tortoise to the hare, eventually the age gap caught up. Linda played for the Wildcats for another decade before being asked to leave the team at 75 due to her declining speed and agility. 

But she didn't let a little rejection stop her (shooters shoot). Most recently, Linda joined the Capitals Women's Hockey League, where she still plays.

👀 Looking ahead... Linda officially owns the Guinness World Record for the oldest female hockey player, at 80 years and 7 days – and at 82 years old, she continues to break the record every day.