Ralph B. Maxwell is a retired United States district court

United States district court

The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...

 judge, who served the first district of North Dakota from his appointment on August 1, 1967 by the Governor of North Dakota

Governor of North Dakota

The Governor of North Dakota is the chief executive of North Dakota. The current Governor is Jack Dalrymple. The Governor has the right to sign and laws, and to call the Legislative Assembly, into emergency session. The Governor is also chairman of the North Dakota Industrial Commission. The...

, William L. Guy

William L. Guy

William Lewis Guy was the governor of the U.S. state of North Dakota from 1961 to 1973. At , he is the oldest of the six living current or past governors of North Dakota.-Biography:...

 until his retirement from the position in 1978. After retiring, Maxwellapplied some of his efforts to the sport of Masters athletics where, as a 90 year old, he has set numerous world records in the 80 metre hurdles, the 200 metre hurdles, the pole vault

Pole vault

Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts...

, pentathlon and decathlon

Decathlon

The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word decathlon is of Greek origin . Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not...

. His decathlon score, set in the World Masters Athletics Championships

World Masters Athletics Championships

The World Masters Athletics Championships are the biannual championships for athletics events held under the auspices of World Masters Athletics, formerly called the World Association of Veteran Athletes, for athletes over the age of 35 years old....

 in Sacramento, California

Sacramento, California

Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...

 in July 2011 more than doubled the previous record score by Vic Younger of Australia. He is one of but a handful of 90 year olds to even attempt to run over hurdles. He was born in Devils Lake, North Dakota

Devils Lake, North Dakota

As of the 2000 Census, there were 7,222 people, 3,127 households, and 1,773 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,508 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 89.23% White, 0.22% African American, 7.84% Native American, 0.28%...

.