From Touch Football to Track Star: The Masters Sprint Journey of PNG’s Rachel Dorsy-Laing
At 59, Rachel Dorsy-Laing made a decision that would reshape her life.
“My journey to athletics began with a dream to compete at the World Masters Games 2021 in Kansai, Japan,” she says. At the time she was still actively playing touch football and planning her next campaign. When she realised touch football was not on the program, she did not let go of the dream. She redirected it.
“Running felt natural and it was easier to organise and prepare for as an individual, compared to coordinating an entire team.”
She reached out to Coach Nelson Stone and asked if he would train her for Kansai. “Surprisingly he agreed without hesitation, he didn’t focus on my age, he saw my determination.” In October 2020, she began learning the fundamentals of sprinting, from block starts to technique and race execution.
The first sessions were confronting. “For the first time it was hard for me running with the younger women and men but that never discouraged me when I came last. I kept pushing myself in training and didn’t miss a training session. In my mind I kept on dreaming and keep working hard, that I will one day step up on the podium.”
Three weeks after starting athletics, she entered her first official race at a Port Moresby Athletics Association meet in November 2020 … That same year in December 2020, I made my Nationals Championship debut under Team NEST, competing in the Open Women’s 100m. In 2021, at my second Nationals Championship in Kimbe, at the age of 60 years old, I set the benchmark for PNG Masters Athletics,.
“Since then my athletics journey has taken me across the world.”
My next goal is to keeping training and attend Oceania Championships in Darwin this year in May.
Her medal haul reflects that journey. Three silver medals at the Pan Pacific Masters Games on the Gold Coast in 2022. Three gold at the Asian Pacific Masters Games in South Korea in 2023. Three gold at the Oceania Masters Athletics Championships in Saipan that same year. In 2024 she reached the semi finals in both the 100 metres and 200 metres at the World Masters Athletics Championships in Gothenburg, finishing ninth and tenth in the world in the women’s 60 plus category. In 2025 she claimed silver at the World Masters Games in Taipei and added three more gold at the Oceania Masters Championships in Nuku’alofa.
Her ambitions are still firmly set on the track. “My next goal is to keeping training and attend Oceania Championships in Darwin this year in May. I also set my goal on attending the World Masters Athletics Championship in Daegu, South Korea to better my performance from 2024 and get into the finals.”
Wearing the Papua New Guinea colours carries deep meaning. “When I line up to race, I feel that emotion of representing my family, my coach, my Athletics Team, my country. And proud to be in the black, red and gold, always put in a lot of effort to do my best for my people who trust in me to deliver the results.”
Her experience has shaped how she views age and performance. “Fitness and competing in sports has no limit. Age is only a number when you have a strong mindset and resilience, no matter how old you are. I am glad I didn’t stop competing. With the right mindset, commitment, perseverance and discipline, you can perform exceptionally.”
What drives her now is both personal and collective. “I want to keep competing to be better than my previous performance and set records in the region. And keep breaking my personal best. And stay fit and healthy, to motivate and inspire other PNG and Pacific women to join in athletics.”
Her message to women across Papua New Guinea and the Pacific is clear. “By competing at my age, I could inspire women especially in Papua New Guinea and Pacific that there is still life to live for. By staying fit and healthy you will be able to live longer and spend more lifetime with your children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and loved ones. If I can do it at this age, anyone can.”
Rachel Dorsy-Laing did not grow up chasing Masters medals. She simply chose to chase a dream and kept turning up to training. The rest has followed, one race at a time.
The next start line is waiting in Darwin.
Masters athletes from across Oceania will come together at the Oceania Athletics Championships this May, competing on the region’s biggest stage. Whether you are chasing a medal, a personal best, or simply the chance to represent your country, this is your opportunity.
Do not sit on the sidelines. Enter now, commit to the training, and take your place in Darwin.
Entries are open. https://athletics-oceania.com/oceania-athletics-area-championships/