Motivation 10 Summer Olympic Sports You're Not Too Old to Qualify For By Laura Williams, MSEd, ASCM-CEP Laura Williams, MSEd, ASCM-CEP LinkedIn Laura Williams is a fitness expert and advocate with certifications from the American Council on Exercise and the American College of Sports Medicine. Learn about our editorial process Updated on April 17, 2020 Fact checked Verywell Fit content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers. Fact checkers review articles for factual accuracy, relevance, and timeliness. We rely on the most current and reputable sources, which are cited in the text and listed at the bottom of each article. Content is fact checked after it has been edited and before publication. Learn more. by Amanda Tust Fact checked by Amanda Tust LinkedIn Twitter Amanda received her Master of Science in Journalism from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Learn about our editorial process Print Watching athletes at the Olympics is enough to fill anyone with a combination of awe and wistfulness. The awe is self-explanatory—who wouldn't be amazed by the athletic prowess of today's Olympians? But the wistfulness might surprise you, especially if you have never dreamed of competing on an international athletic stage. And yet, the thought still sits there, niggling at the back of your mind, "What if, just what if, I missed my calling? What if, with the right training, I could have qualified for an Olympic sport?" Oldest Olympians You may not be 16 anymore, but that doesn't mean you have to hang up your hopes for Olympic gold. The oldest Olympian ever to compete was Oscar Swahn from Sweden, who became the oldest gold medalist in Olympic history at 64 years old when he participated in 1912 as a shooter in the single-shot running deer team. That wasn't even the end of Swahn's competitive years. He returned to the Games in 1920 as a 72-year-old, taking a silver medal in another team shooting event. Getty Images / Blake Little Game Plan for Older Olympic Hopefuls Granted, today's athletic events are more widely publicized and participated in than in the 1920s, making the competition a lot stiffer. But if you're really dedicated to making a name for yourself in sport, you may still have a shot at winning gold. If you're, say, 35 years old, you probably shouldn't expect to become a world-class gymnast. Sometimes age really does matter. Instead, set your sights and train for one of the summer Olympic sports you're (hopefully) not too old to qualify for. Just remember, the road won't be easy—in addition to intense training, you'll need to have a natural talent and the type of genetic makeup that lends itself to Olympic success. Requirements vary from sport to sport, but it's fairly safe to say you'll need a slight build and incredible cardiovascular and muscular endurance to qualify as a marathon runner, Likewise, you'll need killer hand-eye coordination to have a shot at table tennis. Choose wisely, then buckle down and get to work. 1 Archery Quinn Rooney / Getty Images Academy Award-winning actress Geena Davis almost made it to the 2000 Sydney Olympics as part of the United States archery team at the age of 43. She hadn't even picked up a bow and arrow until 1997 after watching the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and drawing inspiration from then-21-year-old Californian archer Justin Huish. Out of 300 archers vying for a spot on the 2000 Olympic team, Davis ended up an impressive 24th place. Overall, the age of competitive archers skews higher than the more well-known Olympic events, so competing as a 30-, 40- or even 50-year-old isn't unheard of. Important skills: Hand-eye coordination, proprioception, moderate upper body flexibility, moderate upper body strength, extreme mental focus 2 Equestrian Events David Rogers / Getty Images As evidenced by New Zealander Brougham's presence at the Rio games at age 62, there's no doubt that athletes can qualify for equestrian events well into their golden years. But when aiming for horseback riding success, you need a horse that's equally skilled, trained, and prepared to compete. Horses are expensive. The highest level show jumpers, for instance, can cost six or seven figures. Yes—hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of dollars. Plus, beyond the cost of the horse itself, you must pay for the care and feeding of the horse. This can be an almost insurmountable barrier to entry in the sport. If money and time aren't a problem, though, then why not go for it? Important skills: Lower body and core strength, high comfort level with horses, an almost unending supply of money and time 3 Shooting Sam Greenwood / Getty Images Shooting, like archery, is a sport that's easier for people to start later in life because you don't have to have a particular body shape or size to participate. In fact, athletes competing in the 2016 Rio Olympics ranged in age from 16 to 55, with most falling between 26 and 40. See? There's still time for you to get started. One thing that benefits older athletes is the mental focus the sport requires. Sheer strength isn't as important as mental strength, and mental strength can improve over time and with experience and age. Important skills: Hand-eye coordination, proprioception, mental toughness, moderate upper body and core strength, cardiovascular endurance to keep the heart rate low 4 Marathon Ezra Shaw / Getty Images If you think you're up for running 26.2 miles at sprint-level speeds, then you can certainly try your hand at marathon running. Out of the six Americans in the 2016 Rio Games, only one of them (Jared Ward) was under 30. Meb Keflezighi claimed the prize as the oldest on the team at 41 years. The skew toward older athletes in marathon running is in part due to the older age of entry into the sport, as many marathoners don't get their start until their late teens or 20s. Important skills: Extreme cardiovascular endurance, extreme muscular endurance (particularly of the lower body), mental toughness 5 Triathlon Mario Tama / Getty Images Triathlon, like marathon running and cycling, is a sport many athletes don't take up until their teens or 20s. But because of the strong showings required across three tough endurance events, athletes tend to be a little younger. For instance, the American team in the 2016 Rio Olympics ranged in age from 23 to 34, with most athletes sitting right around 30 years old. The trick here is how good you have to be in all three events—cycling, swimming, and marathon running. It takes a special genetic makeup to succeed in all three areas. Important skills: Extreme cardiovascular endurance, extreme muscular endurance, muscular strength, particularly of the lower body and core, mental toughness How to Improve Your Muscular Endurance 6 Road Cycling Sport Pool / Getty Images Only one of the athletes participating in road cycling for Team USA at the Rio Olympics was under 30 years old (Taylor Phinney). And the oldest cyclist, Kristin Armstrong, is a three-time Olympic gold medalist who didn't start focusing on cycling until she was 27 years old, after being diagnosed with the osteoarthritis that ended her running and triathlon career. The fact that she was able to land her third gold a day before turning 43 is pretty impressive. Who knows, maybe you could be the next Kristin Armstrong. Important skills: Extreme cardiovascular endurance, extreme muscular endurance, extreme lower body strength and power, mental toughness 7 Rowing Matthias Hangst / Getty Images It may come as a surprise, but it's not unusual for universities to struggle to fill their rowing teams, especially in areas of the country where rowing is less known, without the high school or club teams to feed into the college level. So it's not unusual for Olympic-level rowers to get their start in their late teens or 20s. This leads to an older average Olympian age, which sits right around 30 years old. Just be aware that rowing is hard and often requires early mornings. If the thought of 5:00 a.m. training sessions on a river sounds miserable, you might want to consider a different sport. Important skills: Cardiovascular endurance, extreme full-body muscular endurance, upper body muscular strength and power, comfort in the water 8 Table Tennis Phil Walter / Getty Images Table tennis at the Olympics is nothing like a quick game of ping-pong in the garage with your kids. This sport is serious, and seriously hard, requiring a surprising level of fitness. You must have the speed, agility, and hand-eye coordination to keep a volley alive. So, you may be surprised to hear that table tennis could be one of the more challenging "older athlete" sports to take up. That said, it's not unheard of for older athletes to compete at the highest level. For instance, the 2016 men's bronze medal-winning team from Germany consisted of a 27-year-old, Dimitrij Ovtcharov, and two 35-year-olds, Timo Boll and Bastian Steger (pictured). Important skills: Speed, agility, hand-eye coordination, cardiovascular endurance 9 Canoeing Patrick Smith / Getty Images Canoeing and kayaking, not unlike rowing, runs the gamut in terms of age, with Team USA athletes ranging in age from lower 20s to upper 30s. The nice thing about canoeing is this individual or doubles sport doesn't require a slew of people to fill up a boat, so it's feasible that, with the help of a coach, you could take it up on your own time and dime. You do, however, need access to a large body of water, as well as some serious upper body strength and power. Important skills: Cardiovascular endurance, total body muscular endurance, extreme upper body muscular strength and power, comfort in the water 10 Water Polo Jamie Squire / Getty Images Team sports are hard to get a foothold in later in life, largely because the best athletes in the world have been playing since they were kids—for evidence, look no further than basketball, soccer, and volleyball. One possible exception is water polo. While the sport is certainly filled with athletes who have been playing since childhood, as a whole, it's a lesser-known and participated-in event. This means if you can find a team, and you're willing to train like a madman or woman, and you have a whole lot of natural talent, you might just be able to eke out a late-life spot. Important skills: Cardiovascular endurance, total body muscular endurance, upper body strength and power, comfort in the water, generally well-balanced sports-related skills including hand-eye coordination, agility, speed, and power 5 Sources Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Kundert AML, Di Gangi S, Nikolaidis PT, Knechtle B. Jumping and throwing performance in the World Masters' Athletic Championships 1975-2016. Res Sports Med. 2019;27(3):374-411. doi:10.1080/15438627.2018.1528975 Leyk D, Rüther T, Wunderlich M, et al. Physical performance in middle age and old age: good news for our sedentary and aging society. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2010;107(46):809–816. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2010.0809 Etter F, Knechtle B, Bukowski A, Rüst CA, Rosemann T, Lepers R. Age and gender interactions in short distance triathlon performance. J Sports Sci. 2013;31(9):996-1006. doi:10.1080/02640414.2012.760747 Lepers R, Stapley PJ, Cattagni T. Variation of age-related changes in endurance performance between modes of locomotion in men: An analysis of master world records. Int J Sports Physiol. 2018;13(3):394-397. doi:10.1123/ijspp.2017-0222 Kondrič M, Zagatto AM, Sekulić D. The physiological demands of table tennis: a review. J Sports Sci Med. 2013;12(3):362-70. By Laura Williams, MSEd, ASCM-CEP Laura Williams is a fitness expert and advocate with certifications from the American Council on Exercise and the American College of Sports Medicine. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Review Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Other Helpful Report an Error Submit