Age is Just A Number: Female Athletes Who Defied Age Stereotype
Last year around this time, many news stations were discussing quarterback, Tom Brady, and his future in football. After being drafted from the University of Michigan in 2000 as the 6th round draft pick and leading the New England Patriots to win six Super Bowl championships, the question was, will he continue or will he stop now with the numerous victories on his back? A large factor that was displayed greatly via sports media was his age as he, at the time, was 41 years old. This is a factor we see a lot when discussing the ‘GOAT’S’ of sports. Some even compliment Lebron James, who is 34, for playing past the technical age of his ‘athletic prime’. However, we rarely highlight, discuss, or compliment the female athletes who also are considered “old” in the sports world.
Further, many people compliment extremely successful athletes for playing past the age that is considered their prime. This golden age differs between sports, especially when considering physical contact as a primary component. For many, the maximum age to play their sport was in their early 20’s. Supporting athletes of all ages is so important and there are many young athletes taking the sports world by storm, such as Coco Gauff and Simone Biles. However, if we are going to discuss how Tom Brady (and other athletes) are so successful despite the age factor, than we also must discuss the victorious female athletes who have also defied this odd.
Dara Torres
Dara Torres is a competitive swimmer who broke her first world record at age 15, however, she did not peak then. Torres went on to compete in 5 Olympic games and earned 4 Gold, 4 Silver, and 4 Bronze medals. In fact, she represented the United States in the Olympics from age 15 to 41 and currently holds the record for the oldest American athlete to ever compete in the Olympics. She is now a NY Times best-selling author, fitness advocate, motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and mother. Her successes were never defined by her age and she continued to win for the US!
Formiga
Formiga is a Brazillian soccer player who currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain as a midfielder. She started playing soccer at age 12 and continued her athletic journey in both the United States and Sweden. In fact, she was the first overall draft pick in 2008 Women’s Professional Soccer League before returning to her country to play in 2011. When Formiga was only 17 years old, she played for Brazil in the 1995 Women’s World Cup. She continued her career and in 2019 she competed in the Women's World Cup in France at the age of 41, setting the record for the oldest participant in a Women's World Cup. Besides defying all age odds, Formiga also helps fight for gender equity and women participation in sports in Brazil!
Kerri Walsh Jennings
Kerri Walsh Jennings is a 6’3 volleyball player who began her career as a teenager and is still continuing it today at age 41. Despite the fact that volleyball is ranked the eighth most injury prone sport from ages 14 to 20, Walsh continued her athletic career well beyond her teenage life. She played indoor volleyball at Stanford and won back to back NCAA championships. After her collegiate career, she went on to play beach volleyball in the Olympics and currently holds 3 Gold and 1 Bronze medal in beach volleyball. The last Olympic game she competed in was the 2016 Rio Olympics but her success story is not over yet!
Serena and Venus Williams
Venus, 38, and Serena, 39, are the sisters that both made their mark on the tennis world and continue to do so despite age barriers. In singles, Venus has won 5 Wimbledon Championships, 2 US Opens, an Olympic Gold Medal, and many more. Venus may also be considered the best grass court tennis player and utilizes her tall height and thus long reach to get balls many players could not. In singles, Serena has won 5 Wimbledon Championships, 2 French Opens, 4 US Opens, 5 Australia Opens, among many others. Additionally, Serena continued to come back after giving birth to her daughter and defies both the age “barrier” and the female stereotype of choosing between career and home life. Both women are considered some of the best tennis players of all time and continue to display their successes.
These women are just a few of the many female sport GOATS of this century. They have great success stories and have defied many odds to reach where they are today. Their superb athletic performance that did not stop as birthdays continued is only one of the many ways these women continue to impress the sports industry.
Sources
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Tom-Brady
http://www.daratorres.com/about-dara-torres/
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Kerri-Walsh-Jennings
https://www.teamusa.org/usa-volleyball/athletes/kerri-walsh
https://www.ducksters.com/sports/williams_sisters.php
https://peoplepill.com/people/formiga/
https://thinkprogress.org/formiga-brazilian-player-womens-football-illegal-world-cup/
https://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/volleyball-training.html