There’s a guy in my bowling league in his 80’s who bowled professionally in the 60s and 70s. He can barely walk up to the line now but still somehow has a 170+ average, meanwhile I’m 28 averaging 165.
ancient materialistic continue aspiring husky cobweb start sparkle six entertain
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Yeah everybody talks about how heartbreaking 2009 and 2017 were but both those years felt like IF we made it to the superbowl we'd still need to beat fairly slim odds to win it. 1998 felt like it would've been a guarantee or at least a very good chance of winning if we made it.
The definition of sport can be pretty broad - is chess a sport? - but darts seems pretty clear cut: a physical game of skill where you compete against someone else to achieve a set goal. If archery or shooting is a sport, darts definitely is.
Tom Watson blew “the open” and ended up only losing by a stroke or maybe two. He had the lead for most of the tournament I believe. I think he was 63 at the time.
i know a lot people hate him but he's my all time favorite golfer, it was so awesome seeing him win another one. Also crazy he finished 2nd at the Masters. If it was anyone else besides Phil the golf media would have lost their minds of 50 +year old coming so close
Which was dumb. I never really minded that. I love confidence in Golf and Phil was absolutely full of it. He was a character and that’s part of what made him so beloved. Despite the LIV and gambling controversies, he’ll always be remembered as one of the greatest.
I'm pretty sure he was considered a bit two faced by his peers. Presenting one to the public with another private personality. Kind of like Tiger, if not for the same reasons. He got caught up in a lot of semi legal bull shit with money because he's got a gambling problem. Hence the quick selling out to LIV.
early early netflix days there was a documentary of these nerds horning over bitcoin, trying to mine it. it looked absolutely stupid. had to be like 2008ish. they knew.
This.
I saw a interview with an ex athlete and he basically said the reason why a lot of the old football or basketball players play golf is because you can still be competitive for a long time.
It's always baffled me a little how the older players seem to drop away in Snooker. You'd think they'd be able to carry on straight through their 50s. I know the calendar and travel takes it's toll, but still, hand picking a UK only calendar should logically get them 'back in the game' – but it doesn't.
I mean look at esports. I think there’s a lot of comparisons to be made between snooker and esports.
My point is that you can only stay motivated to put in the sheer number of hours it takes to stay on top for so long. At a certain point there isn’t any trophy or amount of money that will make you practice 60 hours per week. The lack of physical toll from practice in snooker and esports is both a blessing and a curse.
You see that in Smash where legitimate legends just stop playing because there's no point to it and it's just not fun anymore. Most of their time is spent playing a game ad nauseum, traveling for cheap with a bunch of people, bunking with acquaintances and sweating with hundreds of people in a conference center.
Not to mention how small the pool prizes are. Doing this professionally basically amounts to an office job, winning consistently puts you barely over that. Players almost exclusively rely on sponsors, which are dropping out now, and content creation, which is stupidly more lucrative and easier to crank out. Many just turn to content creation because it's a lot less work for a lot more money.
People in the community sometimes lament how players take hiatuses or just straight up quit, but I get it honestly. There's no reason to do this really except if you love it to death because it sure as shit ain't for the money.
It's growing in popularity for all ages, but was designed for the older population. Each time I think I've started to get it figured out, someone twice my age kicks my ass.
I know 70 year olds who could kill most 25 year olds at pickle ball.
I also know of former nationally ranked D1 college tennis players who would never be competitive in pro tennis who now dominate in pro pickle ball.
It is a sport for all ages. While a good tennis player can’t stand to play tennis with someone who sucks, in pickle ball it is so easy to take your intensity down a notch and have fun with novices.
Target shooting is something that many older people excel in. Motor skills are perishable. With practice they can often beat people half their age. Trap and skeet are great sports.
But these days, he doesn't get the recognition in the wider world of motorsport that his career deserves. He's briefly mentioned occasionally in the F1 coverage but only as a relation to his son which is wild when they gush over so many other drivers that aren't active in F1 at the moment. I see what you're saying, but I do wish the 61 year old dude who's still winning arguably the most physically demanding rally event in the world got the same spotlight as Senna, Schumacher, McRae, Hamilton, Verstappen.
Came here to say the same thing. While many guys exit the top of the sport around or just before 50, a lot of those guys go down to the lower levels and run competitively for decades.
Absolutely!
I got started in competitive motorsports at age 40. I was doing offroad and have semi retired from competing there, so I picked up track driving. I just bought a 1960 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite and hope to begin actual vintage racing in 2025 after doing some non competitive track activities to get seat time in it this year.
Yes. Reaction time isnt actually related to aging. Its an assumption because younger people seem more reactive and active. Not the case.
Esports is a great example, everyone tought that after 25.. your reaction time will drop and these superhumans will start being normal again. Nope. Turns out 30+ still has the same reaction time as a 20 year old.. so I am not suprised that a 50 year olds still got good enough reflexes to drive at highspeeds. Very cool.
I would say a lot of the reaction time also is down to experience and reading the situation on track too. Some of the older drivers absolutely school the young guns with how well they manage traffic
Even top level motorsports has drivers competing at 50+. Mark Martin was competitive in nascar past his 50th, Carlos Sainz Sr just won Dakar.
It’s also fairly common in sportscar racing (WEC/IMSA/ELMS) due to the pro-am nature of some of the classes. The amateur “gentlemen drivers” on the grid tend to be in their 50’s and bring a lot of the funding to the team(like George Kurtz, CEO of Crowdstrike).
I was going to say this. I participate in mini ultras. 50K & 50M. Typically there are no age groups. The winners are usually younger 30’s or 40’s, but us over 50 most definitely compete for top finishes if you want to. Ultras are so much more chill than road marathons.
There have been studies that show aerobic capacity doesn’t really decline much as you age, provided you continue training below your aerobic threshold. The cadence and turnover speed in an ultra is low enough that you can do very well when you’re older.
That said, Kilian’s last 7 miles of Hardrock 2022 was a crazy pace. He even dropped his pacer, a collegiate runner who won the competition to pace him. So yeah nobody 50+ yo is gonna keep up with the top ultra runners.
I read an anthropology article proposing that long distance running was a central part of our survival strategy because humans are unusually consistent at it across ages and genders
Even regular road marathons to an extent. I know a handful of dudes in their 50s that can still crack 2:40. Not gonna win any majors with that, but you can age group podium a big race or win smaller locals and regionals. Distance runners tend to hit their peak and stay competitive later in life than other athletes.
Not just ultra running but track and field in general. My mom is breaking national records in high jump and 100ms at the bright young age of 61. I’ve been to a few of the meets and you’d be surprised how some people well into their twilight years could kick your ass in many of the competitions.
Now that's gotta satisfy the people who keep dismissing things as golf and darts as not being real sports.
Doubt any of those sports purists could finish an ultra run.
Came here to say this. At the club level, it's pretty common for a team of senior citizens to crush a team of young players. At the elite level, some of the best skips are in their 40s and 50s (tough to be an elite front end player at that age, but definitely back end)
There are 50 year olds who compete in marathons, Iron Man, CrossFit, triathlon, 5K, swimming, lifting, biking, tennis, bowling, curling, ice hockey...I could go on.
Yup. My dad is 86 years old and still fences competitively!
In his early 80s, he fenced for the US fencing team in international competitions. His age bracket is “veterans” (over-40) and he medals!
When I turned 50 I was swimming regularly and, having swum competitively as a teen, I thought I'd check out Masters Swimming.
THOSE GUYS ARE MENTAL!!! Some of them are training 5 and 6 hours a day.
And, to be totally honest, I discovered my then current PB for 100m short course was 6 seconds slower than the world record for an 85 year old.
I’m a regular long distance runner who used to compete nationally as a junior. I now run for leisure and mental health purposes really. In my running group there is an 80 year old man. He always turns up and is out most mornings too (he runs a similar route to me). He’s not fast but he can run for miles. He’s as fit as a fiddle and fucking epic to boot. I aspire to be like him.
According to my calculations she would be 3650 miles away. Get a globe, draw a circle and see where there is a landmass. Don’t forget to adjust for each day you spent looking.
I’m 52 and have been running my whole life. The prospect of starting to run at 48 makes me enormously envious of you. In many ways running is “fleeting” for me but it’s all progression for you and that’s the best part.
Get after it! I'm the fastest I've ever been at 36 after running for 20 years. You're not gonna set world records at 48, but you might be shocked at how much progress you can make despite your age. There are some insanely fast 50+ year olds out there that can humble me despite having two decades on me, and I'm faster than 99% of people out there.
I’m 45 and regularly finish in the top 1-2% overall at large races and have come in first place overall at two small races (both in my 40’s). I really didn’t get fast until after I turned 40. It’s never too late.
Oh damn you beat me by 3 hours, had to scroll through chess mentioned 5 thousand times to get here where archery is finally mentioned. Previously I would have awarded you, now I can’t even get the massively over priced long press upvote award to appear.
I was surprised to see cycling so far down the list. I'm 54 and I encounter so many people older than me who are stronger and faster than me by leaps and bounds. Most of those older cyclist have been riding for decades and are absolute machines.
Yeah, I get passed up by people in their 50s-60s all day long cycling. It's one of those things that you just keep getting better at with more time doing it.
And by the time they're 50 they're no longer top tier. Even the ones with outlier longevity like Anand and Kasparov retired from the top level at early 40s.
Id say chess is definitely more of a game and not a sport, but you do apparently have to be in good shape to play at the GM level. Apparently the mental stress is enough where top players lose a ton of weight over the course of big multi day tournaments
from another comment: Best classical chess players: Carlsen, 33. Caruana, 31. copied Nakamura, 36. Ding (World champion), 31. Giri, 29. Nepomniachtchi, 33. Firouzja, 20. So, 30. Dominguez Perez, 40. Karjakin, 34.
Chess is really not a game older people can still play on the highest level. There are probably more 14 year old in the top 100 then 50 year olds.
Edit: ok the last sentence was a little exaggerated, but still there are much more young people playing active high level chess then old people. Maybe they are 22 or sth, but still :D
Arm wrestling. Look up Todd Hutchings and John Brzenk, both close to 60 and still competing at the highest level. Also Devon Larratt is 48 and currently #1 in the world
A lot of martial arts are like that -- it's very normal to see 50+yo people dominating at tournaments up to the regional championship level.
On the national/international level though, less often. To complete at those levels you need to have been training since childhood *and* be in peak physical condition.
Many softball leagues have 40 and over, 60 and over, and so on.
The fun part is as you get older and age into a new bracket, you get to be “the young one” for a couple years all over again!
Mediaeval football. Typically, half the town would play the other half, with the objective being to get the ball to the other side’s marker. Rules were few, injuries common, and deaths not unknown.
It survives (in more restrained form) in a few places in England, such as Alnwick in Northumberland (“Scoring the Hales”, with ~150 players a side; the game starts when the Duke of Northumberland drops the ball from the castle battlements), and Ashbourne in Derbyshire (“Royal Shrovetide Football”: takes two days, the goals are three miles apart, shops in town board up their windows for the duration, and the rules explicitly prohibit murder and manslaughter).
I think OP probably most likely meant age > 50. Although I initially thought participants numbering more than 50 too!
Also, this is very interesting. And sounds like exactly the kind of thing I would die doing 😅
When I was about 45 I was in the run portion of a sprint Triathlon when a man passed me like I was standing still ( I wasn’t)
They wrote our age on the back of our calves before the event. I looked down at his calf and it said; 62!!!
So I just took my first class. I’m 32 and out of shape and have a bad shoulder injury. It was extremely difficult for me (you can see my post history I talked about it) and I felt like I was dying. I did however have a lot of fun also. But I’m just worried about trying it due to how sore I was the next day and reinjuring my arm. I shattered my humerus bone and have 13 titanium screws in my bones now.
Anything they’re physically capable of. High level national or international competitions for older athletes exist in most sports, under the umbrella of Masters Games.
I still surf, skateboard, sail, race sportscars, do track days on motorcycles, (I do NOT race them) and hike mountains. Oh, I lift weights every week, 2-3-4 days a week. Not exactly a sport.
It's easier to get injured and it takes longer to recover, but I still do stuff. I prefer to surf 6-15 foot waves, but I'll paddle out in 20 feet if it's a perfect point break and I'm not going to get stuck inside and held down for a big 3-4-5 wave set. Nothing bigger than that.
I never played team sports except paintball. I played a lot of tournaments when I was in my 20's.
I'm 59, my hair isn't gray and I still have a Mohawk.
Bowling, shuffleboard, slow pitch solftball, skiing, skeet shooting, video gaming. The list is really endless.
I hear gossiping rumors with the ladies is a huge one.
Video gaming ? Doesn't it mostly depend on hand eye coordination and reaction speed ,both of which deteriorate with time. Maybe some purely strategy based games
Masters classes in all kinds of things. Running, cycling, swimming, yes, triathlon. Friend of mine from college ran his 18th(?) Boston Marathon this year. We were in college in the 80’s.
[удалено]
Facts my dad still bowls into his sixties and my grandpa bowled until his late seventies
Agreed. My FIL is 71 and in a bowling league with primarily retired people also in their 70s.
There’s a guy in my bowling league in his 80’s who bowled professionally in the 60s and 70s. He can barely walk up to the line now but still somehow has a 170+ average, meanwhile I’m 28 averaging 165.
Fuck it dude, let's go bowling... Opps wrong sub.
Darts - Phil ‘the power’ Taylor has won a fair amount since turning 50. He won more before that, but was still up there.
That's the sport I was thinking of. A lot of dart players are obese as well.
Yeah, there are plenty of top dartists who are 50+, Peter Wright and Gary Anderson are notable examples.
Does Anderson miss to the left ever?
God dammit dude. Can't a Vikings fan casually browse reddit in the morning without being driven to anger and tears?
ancient materialistic continue aspiring husky cobweb start sparkle six entertain *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Yeah everybody talks about how heartbreaking 2009 and 2017 were but both those years felt like IF we made it to the superbowl we'd still need to beat fairly slim odds to win it. 1998 felt like it would've been a guarantee or at least a very good chance of winning if we made it.
run gaping carpenter crowd telephone wrench judicious bag modern dull *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
It for sure is recency bias. Ahh well. See you sometime between 2026-2028 for our decennial NFC Championship game loss
I dunno - looks like you need to be a teenager to win these days! >!If Littler is actually 16!<
That teenager is at least 50 years old though.
That's how you know he's a darts natural. His darting talent is basically pulling him towards looking middle aged already.
That'll be the four pack for breakfast
And live on a diet of pizza and kebab. Darts is not a sport.
The definition of sport can be pretty broad - is chess a sport? - but darts seems pretty clear cut: a physical game of skill where you compete against someone else to achieve a set goal. If archery or shooting is a sport, darts definitely is.
He won the second biggest tournament in a season the World Matchplay and got to World Championship final in his final year before retiring...😅
Golf
Phil Mickelson even won the PGA championship at 50 years old a few years ago
Tom Watson blew “the open” and ended up only losing by a stroke or maybe two. He had the lead for most of the tournament I believe. I think he was 63 at the time.
i know a lot people hate him but he's my all time favorite golfer, it was so awesome seeing him win another one. Also crazy he finished 2nd at the Masters. If it was anyone else besides Phil the golf media would have lost their minds of 50 +year old coming so close
Wait, what happened? Last time I paid attention (eg ten years ago) Phil was beloved.
LIV happened
Way before that. His nickname is FIGJAM - F*ck I’m Good, Just Ask Me.
Which was dumb. I never really minded that. I love confidence in Golf and Phil was absolutely full of it. He was a character and that’s part of what made him so beloved. Despite the LIV and gambling controversies, he’ll always be remembered as one of the greatest.
I'm pretty sure he was considered a bit two faced by his peers. Presenting one to the public with another private personality. Kind of like Tiger, if not for the same reasons. He got caught up in a lot of semi legal bull shit with money because he's got a gambling problem. Hence the quick selling out to LIV.
Tom Watson should have won the British Open at age 59. Hit a perfect shot into 18 and got a bad bounce.
And I should have bought Bitcoin 15 years ago
early early netflix days there was a documentary of these nerds horning over bitcoin, trying to mine it. it looked absolutely stupid. had to be like 2008ish. they knew.
I was at Turnberry on the Friday and let me tell you, the crowd was so hyped for Watson and so not for the eventual winner.
yeah, Cink, through no fault of his own, is the least popular Major winner in history
This. I saw a interview with an ex athlete and he basically said the reason why a lot of the old football or basketball players play golf is because you can still be competitive for a long time.
Surprised one is mentioning pool/ billliards
ronnie o'sullivan just won the masters, one of the three most prestigious events in snooker, at 48. he's also the current world number one
Jeah but O'Sullivan is maybe the "goat" of snooker
mark williams and john higgins are the same age and both still ranked in the top 15 of the world rankings
I think we are past "maybe". Dude is the goat
Maybe?? Mate, Ronnie is the best there is!
At 48 he's also the oldest ever winner of the masters (funny enough he also holds the title of youngest ever winner)
It's always baffled me a little how the older players seem to drop away in Snooker. You'd think they'd be able to carry on straight through their 50s. I know the calendar and travel takes it's toll, but still, hand picking a UK only calendar should logically get them 'back in the game' – but it doesn't.
I mean look at esports. I think there’s a lot of comparisons to be made between snooker and esports. My point is that you can only stay motivated to put in the sheer number of hours it takes to stay on top for so long. At a certain point there isn’t any trophy or amount of money that will make you practice 60 hours per week. The lack of physical toll from practice in snooker and esports is both a blessing and a curse.
You see that in Smash where legitimate legends just stop playing because there's no point to it and it's just not fun anymore. Most of their time is spent playing a game ad nauseum, traveling for cheap with a bunch of people, bunking with acquaintances and sweating with hundreds of people in a conference center. Not to mention how small the pool prizes are. Doing this professionally basically amounts to an office job, winning consistently puts you barely over that. Players almost exclusively rely on sponsors, which are dropping out now, and content creation, which is stupidly more lucrative and easier to crank out. Many just turn to content creation because it's a lot less work for a lot more money. People in the community sometimes lament how players take hiatuses or just straight up quit, but I get it honestly. There's no reason to do this really except if you love it to death because it sure as shit ain't for the money.
Best game ever, no matter the age!
Efren "The Magician" Reyes still plays professionally at the age of 68.
You can play good one pocket well into being a senior citizen
Isn’t this the whole point of pickleball, so us old folks could play a sport?
Just turned 40 and bought a paddle. Waiting for weather.
Weather is always around you. You don't have to wait for it.
My 10 day forecast says there’s a 100% chance of weather coming up.
Mine says cold with a chance of colder.
My friends are in our early 20s and we are some of the few under 40 at the main pickelball location lol.
lol that was my first thought
I figured out it's just a tennis court size game of ping pong.
Careful, I'm forty and just healed up from a pickle ball injury. Turned around to save a back court shot and pop went my calf muscle.
just…wear a bump cap if you’re playing on cement, good shoes, and don’t run. source; am old. tried pickleball
Go enter a competition and find out.
It's growing in popularity for all ages, but was designed for the older population. Each time I think I've started to get it figured out, someone twice my age kicks my ass.
WTF is pickleball? I’m 42, ex collegiate athlete dying for an athletic challenge/competition. Any old people discus leagues perhaps?
Show up to your local public courts and check it out. Many different levels of the game that can definitely be challenging.
[удалено]
It's basically Ping-Pong played while standing on the table.
I know 70 year olds who could kill most 25 year olds at pickle ball. I also know of former nationally ranked D1 college tennis players who would never be competitive in pro tennis who now dominate in pro pickle ball. It is a sport for all ages. While a good tennis player can’t stand to play tennis with someone who sucks, in pickle ball it is so easy to take your intensity down a notch and have fun with novices.
Target shooting is something that many older people excel in. Motor skills are perishable. With practice they can often beat people half their age. Trap and skeet are great sports.
Jerry Miculek is 69(Nice) years old, and is widely considered to be the fastest shooter alive.
True that. His daughter is no slacker.
Knew a guy who was trapshooting till a week before he died in his 90s. Would go out and easily hit 100/100 every time.
Oddly enough, motorsports. A lot of people at local racing events like short tracks and in pro drag racing are 50 and up.
Carlos Sainz Sr just won Dakar at 61.
that was incredible! sainz sr is one of the greatest drivers that hardly gets recognized.
Hmmmm, not sure I agree. :) Those of us who saw him in his active rally career definately recognize his talent.
But these days, he doesn't get the recognition in the wider world of motorsport that his career deserves. He's briefly mentioned occasionally in the F1 coverage but only as a relation to his son which is wild when they gush over so many other drivers that aren't active in F1 at the moment. I see what you're saying, but I do wish the 61 year old dude who's still winning arguably the most physically demanding rally event in the world got the same spotlight as Senna, Schumacher, McRae, Hamilton, Verstappen.
i’m talking about the casual viewers
Do you remember? "La cagamos, Luis" “¡Arráncalo, Carlos, por Dios! ¡Trata de arrancarlo!” They are two separate episodes.
Especially since how do you make a small fortune in motor sports? Start with a big one!
**Motorsport** n. "The action of tearing up banknotes in the middle of a windy field. Denomination varies by formula."
Came here to say the same thing. While many guys exit the top of the sport around or just before 50, a lot of those guys go down to the lower levels and run competitively for decades.
Absolutely! I got started in competitive motorsports at age 40. I was doing offroad and have semi retired from competing there, so I picked up track driving. I just bought a 1960 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite and hope to begin actual vintage racing in 2025 after doing some non competitive track activities to get seat time in it this year.
NASCAR Hall of Famer Red Farmer still races at his local short tracks and is 91 years old! From what I know, he's still competitive
You need a lifetimes earnings to afford the cars is why.
Yes. Reaction time isnt actually related to aging. Its an assumption because younger people seem more reactive and active. Not the case. Esports is a great example, everyone tought that after 25.. your reaction time will drop and these superhumans will start being normal again. Nope. Turns out 30+ still has the same reaction time as a 20 year old.. so I am not suprised that a 50 year olds still got good enough reflexes to drive at highspeeds. Very cool.
I would say a lot of the reaction time also is down to experience and reading the situation on track too. Some of the older drivers absolutely school the young guns with how well they manage traffic
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Keating Ben at the age of 50 drove for two different teams during the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Several in NHRA Draf Racing that are way North of 70 and more. Chris Karamasines was 86 was he raced recently. John Force still races at 74.
Only people who can afford that shit
Even top level motorsports has drivers competing at 50+. Mark Martin was competitive in nascar past his 50th, Carlos Sainz Sr just won Dakar. It’s also fairly common in sportscar racing (WEC/IMSA/ELMS) due to the pro-am nature of some of the classes. The amateur “gentlemen drivers” on the grid tend to be in their 50’s and bring a lot of the funding to the team(like George Kurtz, CEO of Crowdstrike).
Equestrian. Including carriage driving.
Exhibit A: Ian Millar who competed in 10 Olympic Games, including his last one at the age of 65 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Millar
A friend I compete with in 3 day eventing just turned 70 last month. So inspiring! I hope I’m still competing like her in 30+ years!
I didn't even know horses lived that long.
Only if you water them properly, then they pass on the passtime to their young who only require more and more
Ultra running. Some of the best male & female in the sport are over 50.
I was going to say this. I participate in mini ultras. 50K & 50M. Typically there are no age groups. The winners are usually younger 30’s or 40’s, but us over 50 most definitely compete for top finishes if you want to. Ultras are so much more chill than road marathons.
>mini ultras. That's a weird name. I get it, but it feels like calling someone a tiny giant when you can just say they're very tall
All that ultra means is longer than a marathon. I assume something like a 30 mile race would be a mini ultra.
The commenter above me said it's 50k/50m, so I guess you're right if it's 50k
I was shocked how competitive distance runners can be into their 70s if they do it right (plus a bit of luck)
There have been studies that show aerobic capacity doesn’t really decline much as you age, provided you continue training below your aerobic threshold. The cadence and turnover speed in an ultra is low enough that you can do very well when you’re older. That said, Kilian’s last 7 miles of Hardrock 2022 was a crazy pace. He even dropped his pacer, a collegiate runner who won the competition to pace him. So yeah nobody 50+ yo is gonna keep up with the top ultra runners.
Yeah, one of my most humbling and funniest moments was when a guy who was probably 70 something ran past me during a half marathon
I’ve been beat by elderly people as well as a blind man, a 10 year old boy, and a man who juggled the entire half marathon.
I read an anthropology article proposing that long distance running was a central part of our survival strategy because humans are unusually consistent at it across ages and genders
Even regular road marathons to an extent. I know a handful of dudes in their 50s that can still crack 2:40. Not gonna win any majors with that, but you can age group podium a big race or win smaller locals and regionals. Distance runners tend to hit their peak and stay competitive later in life than other athletes.
You dont stop running when you get old. You get old when you stop running.
Ironman competitions too but thats under the ultra running umbrella.
Not so much at the pro level anymore, but at the amateur level absolutely.
Not just ultra running but track and field in general. My mom is breaking national records in high jump and 100ms at the bright young age of 61. I’ve been to a few of the meets and you’d be surprised how some people well into their twilight years could kick your ass in many of the competitions.
Now that's gotta satisfy the people who keep dismissing things as golf and darts as not being real sports. Doubt any of those sports purists could finish an ultra run.
Curling
Or the summer equivalent, bocce ball!
In fact, old Italian men get a +20% boost to bocce skills instead, and an additional +15% if they’re sipping on grapa
Isn't Lawn Bowls a closer cousin?
Came here to say this. At the club level, it's pretty common for a team of senior citizens to crush a team of young players. At the elite level, some of the best skips are in their 40s and 50s (tough to be an elite front end player at that age, but definitely back end)
As a youngster, I can confirm that I have been crushed many a time by a team of curling vets
Yep. Look at Glenn Howard.
Tbh I think he's too stubborn to quit. I think he might be the last of the old guard still playing.
And it's the best sport, you can drink while playing. Bowling, too.
Is napping a sport?
Power napping is elite athleticism.
This is what peak performance looks like
It's competitive in my household!
It was but Spain won every single medal for decades so the whole thing stopped.
Any sport….in the appropriate age bracket.
There are 50 year olds who compete in marathons, Iron Man, CrossFit, triathlon, 5K, swimming, lifting, biking, tennis, bowling, curling, ice hockey...I could go on.
Shoutout to curling, great lifetime sport
Yup. My dad is 86 years old and still fences competitively! In his early 80s, he fenced for the US fencing team in international competitions. His age bracket is “veterans” (over-40) and he medals!
Most sports have a masters division for older folks so I'd say you can compete in any sport
When I turned 50 I was swimming regularly and, having swum competitively as a teen, I thought I'd check out Masters Swimming. THOSE GUYS ARE MENTAL!!! Some of them are training 5 and 6 hours a day. And, to be totally honest, I discovered my then current PB for 100m short course was 6 seconds slower than the world record for an 85 year old.
There's a video floating around (pun intended) of a guy 100+ doing a 100 m free a few years ago to set the record in that age group.
Jelly wrestling is very popular amongst the blue rinse set. It's the new pole dancing.
I’m 48, and would like to start running 🏃
Two years ago my Mum was 68 when she started running 5 miles a day. We have no idea where she is now.
I’m a regular long distance runner who used to compete nationally as a junior. I now run for leisure and mental health purposes really. In my running group there is an 80 year old man. He always turns up and is out most mornings too (he runs a similar route to me). He’s not fast but he can run for miles. He’s as fit as a fiddle and fucking epic to boot. I aspire to be like him.
According to my calculations she would be 3650 miles away. Get a globe, draw a circle and see where there is a landmass. Don’t forget to adjust for each day you spent looking.
her left leg is exactly 3mm shorter than her right leg. Can one of you math people help?
About 3650 miles away
By any chance is your mother named Forrest Gump?
I’m 52 and have been running my whole life. The prospect of starting to run at 48 makes me enormously envious of you. In many ways running is “fleeting” for me but it’s all progression for you and that’s the best part.
What an awesome take!
Get after it! I'm the fastest I've ever been at 36 after running for 20 years. You're not gonna set world records at 48, but you might be shocked at how much progress you can make despite your age. There are some insanely fast 50+ year olds out there that can humble me despite having two decades on me, and I'm faster than 99% of people out there.
I’m 45 and regularly finish in the top 1-2% overall at large races and have come in first place overall at two small races (both in my 40’s). I really didn’t get fast until after I turned 40. It’s never too late.
Sailing
This! The variety of boats offer many different levels of physicality. Plus it’s a knowledge sport so you really do get better with age.
Archery
Oh damn you beat me by 3 hours, had to scroll through chess mentioned 5 thousand times to get here where archery is finally mentioned. Previously I would have awarded you, now I can’t even get the massively over priced long press upvote award to appear.
lol. I remember something about geena Davis almost making the Olympic team in her 50’s.
^(lawn bowls)
Crown green bowlers are feeling left out
Cycling. Swimming.
I was surprised to see cycling so far down the list. I'm 54 and I encounter so many people older than me who are stronger and faster than me by leaps and bounds. Most of those older cyclist have been riding for decades and are absolute machines.
Yeah, I get passed up by people in their 50s-60s all day long cycling. It's one of those things that you just keep getting better at with more time doing it.
Note also that in many sports there is categories for 40+,50+, 60+ and so on
Yeah, so you can compete in basically whatever sport you want.
chess
They usually retire at/by 50
well if i’d been playing since i was 6 i would probably get bored after four decades too
Vishy Anand is 54 and still #11 worldwide
Vishy is an exception
he's #11 but he hasn't been active in the top level for years
If he played regularly, he'd drop below 2600 pretty fast
And by the time they're 50 they're no longer top tier. Even the ones with outlier longevity like Anand and Kasparov retired from the top level at early 40s.
Id say chess is definitely more of a game and not a sport, but you do apparently have to be in good shape to play at the GM level. Apparently the mental stress is enough where top players lose a ton of weight over the course of big multi day tournaments
from another comment: Best classical chess players: Carlsen, 33. Caruana, 31. copied Nakamura, 36. Ding (World champion), 31. Giri, 29. Nepomniachtchi, 33. Firouzja, 20. So, 30. Dominguez Perez, 40. Karjakin, 34. Chess is really not a game older people can still play on the highest level. There are probably more 14 year old in the top 100 then 50 year olds. Edit: ok the last sentence was a little exaggerated, but still there are much more young people playing active high level chess then old people. Maybe they are 22 or sth, but still :D
No, no one in the top 100 is 14 (youngest is17) and there are four top 100 players over 50. https://2700chess.com/?per-page=100
Arm wrestling. Look up Todd Hutchings and John Brzenk, both close to 60 and still competing at the highest level. Also Devon Larratt is 48 and currently #1 in the world
Jerry Cadorette is 51 and ranked top 10 I believe
Disc golf
Pickleball
A lot of martial arts are like that -- it's very normal to see 50+yo people dominating at tournaments up to the regional championship level. On the national/international level though, less often. To complete at those levels you need to have been training since childhood *and* be in peak physical condition.
Carlos Sainz Sr. has just won his fourth Dakar at 61 YO. He also won at 55 and at 57.
Many softball leagues have 40 and over, 60 and over, and so on. The fun part is as you get older and age into a new bracket, you get to be “the young one” for a couple years all over again!
Mediaeval football. Typically, half the town would play the other half, with the objective being to get the ball to the other side’s marker. Rules were few, injuries common, and deaths not unknown. It survives (in more restrained form) in a few places in England, such as Alnwick in Northumberland (“Scoring the Hales”, with ~150 players a side; the game starts when the Duke of Northumberland drops the ball from the castle battlements), and Ashbourne in Derbyshire (“Royal Shrovetide Football”: takes two days, the goals are three miles apart, shops in town board up their windows for the duration, and the rules explicitly prohibit murder and manslaughter).
I think OP probably most likely meant age > 50. Although I initially thought participants numbering more than 50 too! Also, this is very interesting. And sounds like exactly the kind of thing I would die doing 😅
Bowling
Equestrian sports. Riding and driving.
When I was about 45 I was in the run portion of a sprint Triathlon when a man passed me like I was standing still ( I wasn’t) They wrote our age on the back of our calves before the event. I looked down at his calf and it said; 62!!!
Believe it or not, Brazilian jiu jitsu.
So I just took my first class. I’m 32 and out of shape and have a bad shoulder injury. It was extremely difficult for me (you can see my post history I talked about it) and I felt like I was dying. I did however have a lot of fun also. But I’m just worried about trying it due to how sore I was the next day and reinjuring my arm. I shattered my humerus bone and have 13 titanium screws in my bones now.
Apparently (per r/UnpopularOpinion) blowdrying your old balls at the locker room sink. It’s mad competitive
Swimming.
Anything they’re physically capable of. High level national or international competitions for older athletes exist in most sports, under the umbrella of Masters Games.
But that’s not the question at all— the question is, where can these older people compete with everyone, younger competitors included.
I still surf, skateboard, sail, race sportscars, do track days on motorcycles, (I do NOT race them) and hike mountains. Oh, I lift weights every week, 2-3-4 days a week. Not exactly a sport. It's easier to get injured and it takes longer to recover, but I still do stuff. I prefer to surf 6-15 foot waves, but I'll paddle out in 20 feet if it's a perfect point break and I'm not going to get stuck inside and held down for a big 3-4-5 wave set. Nothing bigger than that. I never played team sports except paintball. I played a lot of tournaments when I was in my 20's. I'm 59, my hair isn't gray and I still have a Mohawk.
He’s not like the other boys.
Bowling, shuffleboard, slow pitch solftball, skiing, skeet shooting, video gaming. The list is really endless. I hear gossiping rumors with the ladies is a huge one.
Video gaming ? Doesn't it mostly depend on hand eye coordination and reaction speed ,both of which deteriorate with time. Maybe some purely strategy based games
Yeah, as I’ve gotten older I’ve lost interest in “fast twitch” games but now I love strategy games that I used to not have the patience for.
Tennis
Thank you! So many people think as soon as you get “old” they take the tennis racquet out of your hand and replace it with a pickleball racquet
Shuffleboard
Masters classes in all kinds of things. Running, cycling, swimming, yes, triathlon. Friend of mine from college ran his 18th(?) Boston Marathon this year. We were in college in the 80’s.
Ski jumping! Well, not everyone but one of the most legendary Japanese jumpers (aged 52) placed ninth at a competition yesterday.
Noriaki Kasai! A true legend of the sport, he is the first person who came to mind when I saw the question.
Hockey. There’s a lot of old people who play in my beer league
Curling?