Golden oldies showing the way

Competitive drive not limited to the young

At 54, Argentinian Olympic sailor Santiago Lange is tired and in pain. And on the cusp of winning gold.

The Olympics might resemble a celebration of youthful perfection, but sprinkled across a surprising variety of sports are veterans like Lange.

There are over-40s in gymnastics and rowing, while equestrian events feature several over-50s, topped by the oldest competitor at these Games: 62-year-old New Zealand rider Julie Brougham.

Lange has already been in five Olympics and won two bronze medals. His Nacra 17 catamaran, crewed by 29-year-old Cecilia Carranza Saroli, was leading the fleet ahead of Tuesday's medal race, meaning he had an excellent chance of boosting that haul.

Sailing doesn't have the same physical demands as running or gymnastics, but the fast Nacra catamaran requires agility, wits and the toughness to spend days bouncing around in the waves and weather.

"I'm hurting. It takes it out of me," Lange said at the Olympic sailing base Marina da Gloria, admitting to exhaustion after his latest victorious race.

"It's painful just to pull the boat out of the water."

It isn't just creaky joints he has to worry about.

Lange underwent lung cancer surgery last year and spent months out of the sport. Adding to the weight of these Games, he has two sons onthe Argentine team, sailing a 49er.

"This has been a very emotional Games," he said. "I've been to many other Olympics but I never got to cry so much in the opening ceremony the next morning."

Old dogs, new tricks

Brazil's Robert Scheidt, 43, is looking to add to his haul of five medals to become the most decorated Olympic sailor ever, while 40-year-old rower Katherine Grainger became Britain's most decorated female Olympian in Rio.

Among other golden oldies are Kristin Armstrong, the US winner of the cycling time trial, who is 43, and Argentina and NBA basketball's Manu Ginobili, 39.

Even athletics features some over-40 competitors.

Bernard Lagat is running for the US in the 5,000m at the age of 41. His first Olympics was in Sydney in 2000.

"I train with young guys and I don't believe I'm old," Lagat said after the Olympic trials in Oregon last month.

"If you believe you're old, you're going to run like an old man. These young guys push me every single day."

The most age defying athlete might be Uzbekistan's Oksana Chusovitina, who at 41 is taking part in her seventh Olympics as a gymnast - a sport dominated by teenagers.

But for senior friendliness, maybe nothing beats equestrian events, where the horse takes much of the physical load and experience counts.

Brougham's New Zealander teammate Mark Todd, 60, made his Olympic debut 32 years ago in Los Angeles, where he won the first of his two golds.

"I'm actually riding against children of my contemporaries," the legendary rider said with a laugh.

Well, they're not all so green.

The Kiwis' rivals include Britain's John Whitaker, 60, and his brother Michael, just four years younger.

Passion

Asked for his secret, Lange said that sailing is a more forgiving sport than some others.

"I have a young lady who pulls all the ropes for me," he joked.

Carranza said Lange is no slouch on the physical side of things.

"What I admire from him is that we are always the first ones to go in the water in training," she said.

"We are always the ones who sail the most hours in the day."

Lange said he fights to stay fit because strength might be less important than experience in sailing, but it's still vital.

"It's a very mental sport and being healthy and powerful helps you cope with a lot of things that come up," he said.

More than anything, though, staying at the top of the game comes from hunger to achieve more.

"What I see with Santi is that when you have a passion and you love doing something, you can do it all day long," Carranza said.

And he's not ruling out going to the Tokyo Games in four years.

"That's my dream. If my knees and my back survive, I will do it," he said.

At 60, Mark Todd of New Zealand's equestrian team is one of the oldest athletes at the Rio Games. Gonzalo Fuentes / Reuters