# In which sports do older players dominate? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 18, 2015, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163 "2015-08-18T12:07:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/1 "2015-08-18T12:07:14Z")
I was at the Red Bull Racing air race at Ascot last weekend, and it was very noticeable that the top pilots were all quite old - late 40s through early 60s. Are there any other such sports? I believe equestrianism is another sport where older people can compete, but I don’t know if they dominate. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/2 "2015-08-18T12:24:09Z")
In cycling you’re considered in your prime in your thirties. 25 or 26 year olds are considered “up and coming”. ---
**Author:** ![Toy\_varen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Toy\_varen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toy_varen)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/3 "2015-08-18T13:35:47Z")
I believe the America’s Cup (sailing) tends to favor experience over physical ability. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/4 "2015-08-18T15:29:24Z")
Bowling, darts, shuffleboard, napping. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/5 "2015-08-18T15:42:51Z")
All of the senior leagues. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/6 "2015-08-18T16:09:31Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > In cycling you’re considered in your prime in your thirties. 25 or 26 year olds are considered “up and coming”. Prime is typically 27-35. Results start to drop off after that. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/7 "2015-08-18T16:51:37Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Bowling, darts, shuffleboard, napping. Lawn-yelling. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/8 "2015-08-18T16:53:34Z")
Distance runners, and especially ultramarathoners, [skew older when compared to peak physical ability](http://runnersconnect.net/running-training-articles/does-age-matter-in-ultramarathon/). Physical ability starts to drop after ~24 years old, but 5-10K runners are usually best in their late 20s and marathoners best after 30. The best 100K ultramarathon performance is typically in the 35-40 year old range. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/9 "2015-08-19T18:50:36Z")
A recent column by Joe Posnanski put it well: \*\*\*“Athletes ALWAYS age faster than you think they do.” \*\*\* Even in sports where people assume old guys can stay competitive a long time, they generally DON’T. What about, say, golf? It’s true there, too. Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson were the best golfers in the world once, but neither ever won a major after the age of 34. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/10 "2015-08-19T20:51:33Z")
Most top-level curling skips are forty-ish. The job requires tons of experience to do well, and the physical demands aren’t excessive. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/11 "2015-08-19T21:00:28Z")
Ken Climo, the current Disc Golf world champion is 47 years old. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2015, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/12 "2015-08-23T16:02:56Z")
I was watching truck racing on TV recently and it seems there are a fair few older drivers there. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/13 "2015-08-24T02:56:05Z")
Alan Francis, 45, has dominated horseshoe pitching for a long time. He has won 20 world championships: > **[Alan Francis (horseshoes)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Francis_%28horseshoes%29)** > > Alan Francis is a horseshoes pitcher from Defiance, Ohio. He has won the World Horseshoe Championship 26 times, in 1989, 1993, 1995–1999, 2001, 2003–2010, 2012–2019 and 2021-2022. That is the most anyone has won it (2nd place belongs to Ted Allen who has won 10). He is also the only player to consistently pitch over 90%, and is regarded by many as the greatest horseshoe pitcher ever. The New York Times wrote that he may be "the most dominant athlete in any sport in the country". > He began competi... > **[Perfection in the Horseshoe Pit (Published 2010)](https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/21/sports/21horseshoe.html)** > > Alan Francis, widely considered the best horseshoe pitcher in history, has won 15 world titles, including the past seven. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/14 "2015-08-24T05:22:16Z")
What do you mean by “older”? Lets presume over 30, then in cricket the ages between 30-35 are considered the peak of a batsmans career. In soccer, the best Goalkeepers are often in their thirties. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/15 "2015-08-24T06:28:47Z")
Golf and auto racing seem to be sports where the competitors can stay on top into their 40s. “Sport” may be questionable, but some of the highest paid professional wrestlers in the world in the 90s were well into their 40s, including Hall and Nash, Brett Hart, Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan and Macho Man; Im fairly certain in the 60s through early 80s this was the case as well. Verne Gagne, Antonio Inoki, Lou Thesz, El Santo are just a few examples of performers pulling in the big bucks into their 50s. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/16 "2015-08-24T14:23:22Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Golf and auto racing seem to be sports where the competitors can stay on top into their 40s. No, golf is NOT a sport in which players stay on top in their 40s. Older players occasionally have great days, even great weekends, but surprisingly few majors are won by guys in their 40s. As I noted earlier, neither Arnold Palmer nor Tom Watson ever won a major after the age of 34. What’s surprising is that elite golfers can usually still drive very well in their 40s and 50s. It’s the SHORT game that goes to hell. That’s why it drives me nuts when I hear people say things like, “Tiger can still be #1- he just has to start putting better.” Sigh… don’t you get it? Putting is the first thing to go, when a golfer starts getting old. ---
**Author:** ![denquixote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@denquixote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/denquixote)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/17 "2015-08-24T20:36:26Z")
Actually Tiger’s putting, at least putts under 10 feet is still outstanding and Davis Love III age 51 won a PGA tournament on Sunday. He may well have been the oldest competitor. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2015, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/18 "2015-08-24T21:04:37Z")
> [@denquixote](#): > > Actually Tiger’s putting, at least putts under 10 feet is still outstanding and Davis Love III age 51 won a PGA tournament on Sunday. He may well have been the oldest competitor. As **astorian** said, “Older players occasionally have great days, even great weekends”. Yes, Love won yesterday, but it was his first PGA victory in 7 years, and only his third since 2003 (when he was still under age 40). ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2015, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/19 "2015-08-25T09:21:14Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > Distance runners, and especially ultramarathoners, [skew older when compared to peak physical ability](http://runnersconnect.net/running-training-articles/does-age-matter-in-ultramarathon/). Physical ability starts to drop after ~24 years old, but 5-10K runners are usually best in their late 20s and marathoners best after 30. The best 100K ultramarathon performance is typically in the 35-40 year old range. Which ties into the cycling. Endurance sports can favour older people. Valentino Rossi at 36 is still doing very well in MotoGP, but I think he is the exception rather than the rule, and it only takes one big accident to finish your career. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2015, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163/20 "2015-08-25T20:30:50Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > “Sport” may be questionable, but some of the highest paid professional wrestlers in the world in the 90s were well into their 40s It’s not questionable, professional wrestling is not a sport. They aren’t competing, so while their physical attributes might be impressive it says nothing about domination. Might as well throw out actors. I mean how old was Stallone in the most recent Rocky? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-sports-do-older-players-dominate/728163.md?page=2)