Here’s why this 96-year-old Toronto runner refuses to slow down

Meet Paget Blaza who will be taking part the annual Sporting Life 10K at 96 years old.

In a field packed with younger runners and fancy smartwatches, Paget Blaza will arrive with nothing more than a race bib and a message he’s followed his whole life: “Keep moving.”

The 96-year-old Scarborough runner is among some of the oldest participants in this year’s Sporting Life 10K. It’s a race in its 26th year and raised more than $30 million since 2000 for an Ontario charity known as Campfire Circle.

“Every participant, donor, and sponsor helps kids rediscover joy, friendship, and belonging through camp experiences,” CEO Alex Robertson said in a news release. This year, organizers are expecting 24,000 runners.

For Blaza, the race is about staying active and helping others. Not his age.

“Years ago, my father, who lived until his late 80s, used to say to me when I was young: ‘you’ve got to keep moving,’” Blaza said. “And that’s what I’ve been trying to do ever since.”

Training in ‘bitter cold’

In an interview with CP24 before Sunday’s race, Blaza said his mindset is what carried him through one of his toughest training seasons this winter as temperatures often plunged below zero with wind chill feeling like -30.

“It’s been a very difficult one because of this weather,” he said. “It’s so difficult to get out and run with the snow and the ice and the bitterly cold winds that have been blowing around Scarborough, and I’m trying to catch up now.”

• Some of the coldest temperatures in the GTA this winter

His wife, Susan Blaza, noted that while the weather can be tough, Paget’s discipline is tougher.

“He just gets on and he prints off the calendar and he puts down his goals every day... when he runs or walks or does his exercises, he keeps a log of his progress,” she said, adding that age has never defined him.

“Paget is not limited in any way by his age, and he’s thoroughly engaged in life,” she emphasized.

What is Campfire Circle?

According to its website, Campfire Circle says more than 10,000 children in Ontario hospitals are living with “serious illnesses” and missing out on daily experiences that shape childhood.

They say the funds from the race help provide moments of joy, and connection, adding that with support, “we can triple our reach from serving 3,000 to 10,000 campers a year by 2030.”

In 2025, the event raised more than $2.4 million with over 23,000 runners.

Blaza explains it’s missions like these that resonate deeply with his upbringing.

“I guess I was brought up to have some concern for others less fortunate than myself,” he said. “That still seems to provide some motivation.”

However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for Blaza as years went on. He reveals that his determination was tested after a major health scare nearly 10 years ago.

“In 2017 I underwent brain surgery… at one stage it was touch and go,” he said. “But I came out of that, and I guess almost unconsciously, I thought, what am I going to do to get back on my feet and get fit again? That was a real good motivator… get out, get running.”

But it was the help of his wife, that Blaza says helped him cross the finish line.

“I could not do this without the help of Susan. She supported me through thick and thin, through hail and wind... she supports me every step I take,” he said.

‘The person I am’

At 96, Blaza said most people don’t believe his age when they ask.

“I say, let’s do some basic math. I was born in 1930… 70 and 26 turns out to be 96 in my book," he said while laughing.

Still, Blaza says he shrugs off the attention the same way he lines it up on race day.

“I try to be the person I am, not the person I would like to be,” he concluded. “In other words, I just get on with the race.”