F
or every athlete, there is an unspoken hourglass waiting somewhere in the background—at each practice, each match, each tournament. Every grain of sand that falls is leading up to the unavoidable truth that we will one day reach our limit. An athlete’s love of the game may carry into old age, but for many their active participation ends much earlier. High-level athletes work hard to delay the inevitable: rigorous training, physical therapy, regimented diets—you name it. And as time has gone on, the number of athletes still pursuing competitive sports beyond the usual retirement age has grown significantly. Tom Brady only recently retired from American football at age 44 after leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl win in 2021. Professional footballer Kazuyoshi Miura, 55, is still going strong for the Suzuka Point Getters. At age 37, Lebron James put up 56 points in a season high for the Lakers in March and “became the oldest player in NBA history to post 50-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in a game.” (1) Every sport has seasoned players and knowledgeable elders that defy the rule of time and seem to be only getting better with age. On the other side of things, most athletes struggle with injury at some point
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