Ruth Welding

Highland Games Masters Hall of Fame

Ruth was a varsity collegiate athlete in swimming and track and field at Purdue University in the late 70s. She also was on the Club Rugby team and the Women’s powerlifting team. The Purdue Womens Powerlifting team was the first in the country and lifted in several federations. She continued after college in Powerlifting as an athlete, coach and international level official (retiring from the platform as a lifter in the early 2010s due to a shoulder issue). She started masters track and field (shot, discus, javelin, hammer and weight throw) in her mid 30s.

In the early 2000’s, Mike Huth in Ft Wayne said  “you throw things and lift heavy, come out to the Indiana Highland games and play”. So she did. In that first event, Mike taught her every event and she has continued to compete ever since. In 2008, Angus Billy Scruggs called because he wanted to start a W50+ group. Ruth was the first world champion in the W50 at the World Championships in Saline Michigan that year.

She has competed in every World Masters (and placed in the top 3 in most) since then except 2013. She has won the Targas multiple times for Combined Stones (2010, 2011), Combined Weights (2021), Combined Hammers (2021) and the first time the combined Heights (2021) were awarded. She won her second World Championship in Austin in 2021 for the inaugural W65 age group.

Ruth also competes locally in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

As one of the smaller athletes, Ruth depends on great technique and has moved to throw left handed since about 2015 due to a right shoulder issue. Very inspiring and impressive. She has been a pioneer for masters women.