Athletes are retiring later and later: how is this possible?

It seems this time The end of Rafa Nadal’s career yes, it’s true. The tennis player said he would give up his racket after the Davis Cup final. This is a possibility that has been discussed a lot in recent years. He himself, on some occasions, lamented that although he wanted to retire as late as possible, he may have been hampered by a foot problem.

And the Mallorcan tennis player is suffering from something known as Müller-Weiss syndrome. This is a disease that affects the navicular bone of the foot and causes severe chronic pain. This does not endanger the lives of patients, but could force Rafa Nadal to withdraw. Many athletes did it for less money.

But the disease, which continued to cause him pain despite surgery, could not defeat him. And the years too. Rafa Nadal’s withdrawal will take place in the coming days. Has 38 years old and won’t break the record Roger Federerwho retired from the tennis courts at the age of 41. But it will go down in history for this and other, much more obvious reasons.

Times are changing

At the lower rungs of the sports ladder, many athletes finish their careers before they are 20 years old. In fact, according to a study conducted in the United States, only 8.3% of women and 6.3% of men who competed in high school leagues remained competitive athletes in college.

However, these are people who do not want or cannot make sport a profession. For those who succeed, retirement comes later, but not at 65. It is logical that it is necessary good physical shape and, unfortunately, with age it inevitably loses its strength.

However, in recent years we have seen more and more athletes retiring. older than usual. There are clear exceptions, for example among female athletes. rhythmic gymnasticsin which the teenager’s body is required to perform most of its pirouettes. But in other disciplines, 30 has become the new 20.

Rafa Nadal’s career ended at the age of 38, much later than other tennis players. With rare exceptions, such as the aforementioned Roger Federer or the Czechoslovakian Martina Navratilovawho lasted until they were 49 years old, the racket usually ends for them when they are just over 30 years old.

But over the past decade, there have been many tennis players who have more than broken the 30-year-old barrier. We have also seen this in other sports disciplines. Footballers usually retire from 32 to 35 years oldbut in Spain there is a case Joaquin, who hung up his boots at 41. In other countries there are even more amazing cases, for example, the case of the goalkeeper. Essam El Hadary, those who retired at 47, or the Japanese Kazuyoshi Miurawho refuses to give up football despite being over 57 years old.

Cycling, basketball, swimming… All sports have their own examples. Why are they becoming more common?

Rafa Nadal’s departure is not the only unexpected development.

As he explained in an interview with the magazine Top former head of the medical service of the Royal Spanish Athletics Federation, Christophe Ramirez Parenteauathletes retire at older ages because They have significantly improved both their workouts and the diet they follow.

These days, performance-enhancing diets are much better known. The same goes for training exercises. As we get older bones and muscles weaken. Therefore, it is important to train with exercises that strengthen our musculoskeletal system. For this reason, physiotherapy has also taken on a much more important supporting role than before.

Ramirez notes that athletes’ strength and speed decline over the years. Resistance doesn’t do much; but still takes longer to recover effort. This time depends largely on each person, so they need individual attention from the medical team.

Finally, the fact that athletes are aging is also positive. When they more mature it is easier for them to stick to the diet and exercise regimen they need. So, it’s a win-win.

It is true that there will be genetic factors that mean that there are players on the field closer to 50 than 60, or that Rafa Nadal’s retirement occurred around forty years. These are people who are genetically and physically predisposed to physical activity. But perhaps in another era they would not have lasted so long. Rafa Nadal is a unique athlete, of which there have been very few in history. But he may also be very happy with the time he played.