The 8 Oldest Athletes In Olympic History Prove It’s Never Too Late To Pursue Your Dream

The Olympics feature the best athletes on the planet, and the fact that the vast majority of the people who compete fall on the younger end of the age spectrum shouldn’t come as a huge surprise.

However, there are plenty of notable exceptions to that general rule.

People who are eligible for retirement are few and far between when it comes to the athletes who gather for the Olympics, but there have been a number of folks in that category who’ve defied the odds—including a few who even managed to come home with a medal.

You’re probably going to find yourself fighting an uphill battle if you want to join their ranks, but it’s still hard to not be a little inspired by the Olympians who’ve competed despite seemingly having no business being at the Games in the first place based on their age.

Oscar Swahn

Let’s kick things off with the oldest Olympian in history, the oldest medal winner in Olympic history, and the oldest gold medal winner in Olympic history: Swedish shooting legend Oscar Swahn.

Swahn was 60 years old when he made his Olympic debut when the competition was held in London in 1908., and the shooter became the second-oldest gold medal winner to date with a win in the individual running deer double shot competition.

Four years later, the Olympics came to his native country when they were held in Stockholm, and he became the oldest gold medalist in history (a record that still stands) as part of Sweden’s shooting team.

He returned yet again in 1920 and won a silver at the age of 72 years and 281 days old. That remains the mark to beat, but it would have been even higher if hadn’t turn down the chance to compete in 1924 even though he’d qualified.

Arthur von Pongracz

Arthur von Pongracz—who was born in what is now Poland but was born when the country was still a part of the Austrian Empire—was also firmly in the second half of his life when he debuted at the Olympics in 1924.

The equestrian never won a medal while competing for Austria in Dressage, but he just missed out on the podium when the country finished fourth in the team event in Berlin in 1936 at the age of 72 years and 49 days.

Thomas Scott

Foreign athletes were welcome to compete in the archery competitions that were held in St. Louis in 1904, but the entire field ended up being comprised of 23 men and six women who all hailed from the United States.

That group of athletes included Thomas Scott, an Ohio native who was at the time the oldest person to compete in the Olympics at the age of 71 years and 261 days (he appeared in two events but failed to secure a medal in either of them).

William Martin

France was still a monarchy when William Martin was born in the city of Rouen in 1828, and he was 71 years and 212 days old when he joined the team of yachtsmen who took part in multiple races when the Olympics were held in Paris in 1900.

Martin didn’t have much competition in the age category when you consider that was only the second installment of the modern Games, but he nonetheless had a claim to the title of the oldest medal winner after securing a silver and a bronze in the two races he took part in.

Lorna Johnstone

Lorna Johnstone was an equestrian representing Great Britain who made her Olympic debut in Melbourne in 1956 at the age of 54.

She got back in the saddle when the Summer Games were held in Mexico City in 1968 before gearing up for one last ride in Munich in 1972.

She never medaled, but the fact that she was 70 years and 5 days old when she competed in Germany means she is still the oldest woman to ever compete in the Olympics.

Eliza Pollock

Thomas Scott may have missed out on a medal in St. Louis, but the same can’t be said for Eliza Pollock, who was one of the six American women who competed in archery in 1904.

She won two bronze medals in the individual competitions, and while the gold medal she won in the team event probably deserves an asterisk because she was a member of the only squad that entered it, she is still the oldest woman to appear on and top the podium after doing so at the age of 63 years and 333 days.

Karl Münich

Pollock is just one of a handful of people who’ve competed in the Olympics in their 60s, and that list also includes Karl Münich.

The Austrian fencer didn’t win a medal when he competed in the sabre event in Stockholm in 1912, but the fact that he was 63 years and 326 days old at the time is still a pretty impressive accomplishment on its own.

Oscar Rompani

At the risk of minimizing the achievements of everyone else on this list, I think most people would agree rowing is a bit more physically taxing than all of the other disciplines I’ve listed so far.

As a result, the fact that Oscar Rompani managed to represent Argentina in the men’s coxed pair at the Olympics in Tokyo in 1964 is pretty impressive. He didn’t medal, but he remains the oldest rower to ever participate in the Games after doing so at the age of 60 years and 70 days.