Mary Burger

Mary Burger
Birth nameMary Lichtle
OccupationRodeo competitor
DisciplineBarrel racing
Born (1948-08-18) August 18, 1948 (age 76)
Decatur, Indiana
Major wins/Championships2 WPRA Barrel Racing World Championships
Lifetime achievementsOldest rodeo world champion
Honors
2017 National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
Significant horses
Fred (Rare Fred)
Mo (SadieFamousLastWords)
Sailor (Sailors Wind)

Mary Burger (born August 18, 1948) is an American professional rodeo cowgirl who specializes in barrel racing. She has won two Women's Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) barrel racing world championships in 2006 and 2016. Burger was 68 years old when she won the championship in 2016, setting a new record for oldest professional rodeo world champion in any rodeo event, male or female. She broke the existing record set by Ike Rude of 59 years old in steer roping set back in 1953. She also broke the record set by Mary Walker in 2012 at 53 years old. Also In 2016, she became the third WPRA barrel racer to wear the No. 1 back number at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR). She set a new record for season earnings, and she set a new record by becoming the oldest WPRA qualifier to the NFR at 68 years old. Her horses, Mo and Fred, whom she used to win her titles with, she trained in barrel racing herself. In 2017, she was inducted into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.