Cam Myers ran a world leading 1500m in Paris. He’s just 20 years old. Isn’t that incredible? Ask Samuel Ogazi, the 20-year-old world leader at 400m. Or Ja’Kobe Tharp, who set a world record in the 110m hurdles at… you guessed it: just 20 years old. Then there is Adaejah Hodge who currently holds the world lead in the 100m and the 200m. She is of course 20 years old. And don’t forget about Birke Haylom, the world leader at 1500m, who is also 20 years old!

Maybe being young is an advantage?

Well, the Boris Hanžeković Memorial, held in Zagreb on Friday, would argue otherwise. Held since 1951, the Continental Tour Gold event is the oldest sporting event in Croatia. Last week it certainly felt that way.

Elaine Thompson-Herah (34) won the women’s 100m in 10.91.

Shaunae Miller-Uibo (32) won the women’s 200m in 22.19.

And then Andre De Grasse (31) won the men’s 200m in 19.95.

What year is it… 2015?

At the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, the trio all earned their first of many outdoor global championship medals. In fairness, De Grasse did have to share his bronze medal with another young up-and-comer named Trayvon Bromell (30)—the same guy who just won the Paris Diamond League.

Today’s world leaders would have been finishing up elementary school in 2015! And in 2026, they’re competing against athletes that used to play snake on a Nokia while waiting for their call time.

As fans, we love the excitement of the prodigy. We’ve certainly written extensively in this newsletter about the wunderkinds suddenly at the helm of our sport. There is no limit to how high a 20 year old’s ceiling might be and that unknown potential is nothing if not captivating! If anyone is going to break a world record, it’ll likely be one of the kids at the top of sport, though it’d be great to see a tricenarian prove that prediction wrong.

The list of athletes who are 30+ and still posting top-10 marks in their event is a short one.

Across the track in 2026, there are only 17 women and 10 men who qualify for that accomplishment. The oldest athlete with a current top-ten time is 36-year-old Dalilah Muhammad. Track is not like baseball, where the average age of a major leaguer is 29 and there are currently four active roster players who have entered their fifth decade.

To still be active and winning some of the most prestigious races in track and field, these older athletes had to persevere. Andre came back from a torn hamstring, while Trayvon and Elaine both tore their Achilles. And in addition to knee surgery, Shaunae has had two kids.

At a certain point in every athlete’s career, the narrative flips from “what could they do at their best?” to “how long can they keep doing what they’re doing?” And that’s if they’re lucky— there are plenty of athletes whose legs don’t take them that far. Let’s not forget that Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Usain Bolt are the same age, but she made it two Olympics and four World Championships longer than him. And both of these Jamaican greats are two years older than David Rudisha, who, at 37, has never officially retired but hasn’t raced in nearly a decade. It goes to show just how special being great for a really long time is that even the best of the best rarely are.

So while most fans are understandably excited about the future and what records may someday fall, let’s also leave time for a little nostalgic appreciation of continued greatness. Being fast when you’re 20 is impressive, but building a decade-long career is the stuff of legend.

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