Age-Related Rates of Decline in Performance among Elite Senior Athletes

Abstract

Background: Age-related disability and lost independence currently plague one third of older Americans. Many causes of disability, lost muscle mass and bone mineral density, are modifiable with exercise. Most exemplary of successful aging are the Senior Olympians; this group of vital athletes exhibit persistently high levels of functional capacity. Purpose: This study describes demographic data, injury characteristics and the effect of aging on physical performance in senior athletes to identify key time points for intervention to address declining performance. Study Design: Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Senior Olympians (>50 years) participating in the 2001 National Senior Olympic Games were surveyed for demographic and health characteristics. Age-related changes in physical performance were determined from mean winning performance times in track and field events. These were plotted against age and task for men and women. Analysis of variance and intergroup significance were analyzed using the Tukey procedure. Percentage performance change across events was compared. The 2001 National Senior Olympic Games results were compared with American track and field record holders. Results: Senior athletes’ performance declined (male and female) approximately 3.4% per year over 35 years of competition—slowly from age 50 to 75 years and dramatically after age 75 years. Men showed no difference in decline of sprint and endurance events, whereas the decline in the sprint was greater than in endurance for women, especially after the age of 75 years. Conclusion: Even the healthiest examples of musculoskeletal aging experience significant performance declines around age 75 years. This may be a key time point for preventive intervention.