I very much doubt fencing is in the running for older peaks. You’re directly competing against another person and reaction time is utterly critical which slows with age, both mentally and physically. Almost certainly things that favor an older peak aren’t going to rely on reaction time. Skills that are better suited for older age are things where precision, practice, and experience count but that don’t rely too much on being in peak physical form. Golf, pool, bowling, darts. Even then, I don’t know that anyone peaks very late in life, but rather the skills probably fall off more slowly.
And shooting. As I’ve mentioned before, I was a competitive rifle shooter, who has competed at very high levels. While I was in my early-to-mid 20s when I competed, it was not unusual to have other shooters who were 40-somethings in the match. And they were good! The older shooters were always forces to be reckoned with in competition.
And nobody was in peak physical condition. As one of my teammates once said, “I’m glad I’m a little fat, because it makes me more stable from the prone position.”
This will depend on whether you consider snooker a sport or not, but Ronnie O’Sullivan won his first ranking title at 17 and won this year’s Masters at 48.
With due respect - Blanda is a neat story - this ISN’T what I meant, actually. I’m thinking about peak ages in sports, not individuals. Sure, you have you George Blandas, your Randy Johnsons. But those are exceptions, they’re unusual data points on the bell curve (just as you have your Dwight Goodens and Teema Selannes who peak young.)
FYI - the youngest Olympic medallist was 10 years old (although some say he was only 7). He was the coxswain for the Dutch team that won a rowing gold in 1900 (he was a local boy who was picked up off the street - ‘Hey kid, can you steer a boat?’).
He disappeared after the race - the only surviving evidence is a single photo.
Ah, a mistake of fact on my part.
IIRC, the oldest was in his 70s (in shooting).
No doubt killed in a trench or over barbed wire, or maybe just the Flu. Kinda sad when you think about it.
I saw a piece of fluff on the Olympics just this week about the youngest was the kid(the coxswain) and the oldest was a shooter I think they said up in his eighties. He competed against his son. They both medaled.
I think curlers could be way up in age if they weren’t sweepers.
Youngest, the divers can be very young. There were 13 and 14 yo divers this week.
They did pretty good.
The latest meme is Turkish Olympian Yusuf Dikeç:
He won silver in mixed team air pistol at age 51. (His partner is 24.) The meme appeal is driven as much by his casual stance and choice of “equipment” as it is by his silver hair.
In the 2024 Olympic Games spirit, and since the only sports I’m interested in / somewhat knowledgeable about are Track & Field events, I submit the discus and the hammer throw, where just this past week we’ve seen people in their late 30’s competing at the highest level, and people in their early-mid 20’s being described as “really young.”
Unlike shooting, darts etc., the discus and hammer throws are sports that require extreme strength, speed and dexterity. A 39-yo. there impresses me way more than someone shooting pistols expertly at 50.
I don’t know what the peak age is, but the Tour de France has a “young rider” (white jersey) competition – The Young rider classification is restricted to the riders that will stay under the age of 26 in the calendar year the race is held. There is also young rider classification in the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.
Sometimes the young rider is overall winner, but not always.
Brian
IIRC that only happened three times (at least in modern times): Jan Ullrich in 1997 and the first two wins by Tadej Pogacar in 2020 and 2021. Experience and tactical skills are crucial for winning a grand tour, so older riders have an advantage. I’d say peak ages in cycling are 25-35.
The hammer throw winner on the men’s side was the youngest winner in the history of the Olympics. It’s quite unusual, apparently. Lord knows what the guy will end up doing; if he stays healthy and doesn’t get bored of it he could win the event at the 2036 Olympics and we don’t even yet know what city that will be in.
I’ve seen people in shot put and discus talk about “old man strength,” about how they think they peak in their 30s.
Diving is gymnastics where you get chlorine in your hair.
Soccer is usually mid to late 20s, but is probably skewing slightly older recently. Used to be 30 signaled the beginning of the end of your career, but now it’s more like 34-35.
John Force was (till a crash a few months ago) competitive in the NHRA Funny car class at 76. He won an event last May beating drivers half his age. Before anyone starts with the “he isn’t an athlete talk”, he drove a 2500 horsepower vehicle from 0 to over 300 mph in less than 4 seconds, he endured G forces up to 8 G’s at launch at average about 5.5 G’s for the total run. To stop the car he deploys a chute that results in up to -3 G’s. Reaction time is measured in 1/1000 of a second, he was still one of the best in the NHRA. An average person will blackout at 3 to 4 G’s of force. The only profession that subjects people to more G forces are pilots of military jet aircraft and they were special flight suits to help combat the effects of G forces.
The 2024 Team GB Olympic skateboarding team included Sky Brown (15) Lola Tambling (16) and Andy Macdonald (51). No, those last digits aren’t reversed.