[vincesanity82]

This is Dara Torres. She's 40 years old. And she just broke the U.S. record in the women's 50-meter freestyle with a time of 23.87 seconds.

That would be an incredible accomplishment for anyone; the previous record was 24.21 seconds, which Kara Lynn set on March 18, 2004. The 50 free is the shortest event in swimming, and in short events records just aren't broken by .34 of a second.

But at her age it's remarkable. Torres was on the U.S Olympic teams in 1984, 1988, 1992 and 2000, and she has nine Olympic medals. At the 2000 Sydney Games she was the oldest American swimmer at age 33, and she will be the first swimmer to make five Olympic teams and the oldest female Olympic swimmer ever if she makes the Beijing team next year.

Life Begins at 40: Dara Torres Breaks 50-Meter Freestyle American Record - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog