Tuesday, June 30, was a good day for proving that age doesn't always define ability in sports.
Just after noon ET, ESPN's Shams Charania broke the news that LeBron James would continue his career with an unprecedented 24th season in 2026-27 -- and change teams to do so.
Little doubts could be had about James' effectiveness at age 41 during the 2025-26 season. He averaged 23.2 points, 7.3 assists and 6.7 rebounds for the Los Angeles Lakers in the postseason, playing 38.4 minutes per game and leading his squad to a first-round series victory over the Houston Rockets even with Luka Doncic out because of a hamstring strain.
Just hours after the news about James broke, another veteran athlete made waves as well: Serena Williams at 44 played her first singles match in nearly four years at Wimbledon, falling to Maya Joint6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3.
The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion announced earlier in the month her return to tennis and plans to compete with her sister, Venus, in doubles play at Wimbledon in addition to participating in singles competition, seeking her eighth and seventh Wimbledon titles in the former category.
While athletes enjoying the longevity James and Williams have is rare, their jointly newsworthy day is a reminder that it's not completely unprecedented. Here's a short list of other athletes who defied Father Time.
NFL
Tom Brady
Perhaps the most salient recent example of an athlete who kept going long after most others typically retire, Brady won four of his seven rings after turning 37. In his second-to-last season at 44 years old, he led the league in yards (5,316) and touchdowns (43). From his age-40 season to the end of his career, Brady threw for a total 193 touchdowns with a 65.6 completion percentage and added an MVP award.
Peyton Manning
Manning missed the the 2011 NFL season because of neck surgery, and the Indianapolis Colts moved on from him after that. He signed with the Denver Broncos for his age-36 season, then demonstrated that the Colts might have been a bit premature in their decision.
Over the final four seasons of his Hall of Fame career, Manning threw for 17,112 yards, 140 touchdowns and 53 interceptions. While injuries and inconsistency marred his final season, Manning put it all together one more time in the playoffs to lead Denver to victory in Super Bowl 50.
NBA
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The Bucks and Lakers Hall of Famer was still putting up significant numbers late in his career, averaging 23.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in his age-38 season. He won three of his six rings and an NBA Finals MVP after turning 37.
WNBA
Sue Bird
Bird was a force on the court even at the end of her long and storied career. She made the All-Star Game in four of her final five seasons and led the Seattle Storm to WNBA titles in 2018 and 2020. Bird averaged 7.1 assists in her age-37 season, the highest single-season mark of her career.
Diana Taurasi
Taurasi was a standout for the Phoenix Mercury for a full 20 seasons, and she didn't slow down much at all in her later years. She made All-Star Games in her age-36 and 39 and 42 seasons, and averaged 14.9 points, 3.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds in her final campaign.
MLB
Barry Bonds
In many ways, the San Francisco Giants slugger broke baseball. He famously hit 73 home runs in his age-36 season, beginning a streak of four straight MVP awards, but it was his age-39 season in 2004 that was really beyond belief.
Bonds had an on-base percentage of .609 that year, a full 140 points higher than the next-highest player (Todd Helton). Part of the reason for that was how terrified teams were to face him -- out of his 232 walks, 120 of them were intentional. Even in his final season, at 42, Bonds was sixth in the league in OPS with a 1.045 mark.
Willie Stargell
Pops was the heart and soul of the Pittsburgh Pirates, and nowhere was this more apparent than in his late 30s. After an off year in 1976 when his OPS fell to .797, Stargell roared back, posting three straight seasons with an OPS over .900.
In 1979, Stargell hit 32 home runs and won the National League MVP award, but he saved his best for the postseason. Stargell hit .415 in the 1979 NLCS and World Series combined, with five home runs, six doubles and 13 RBIs as he led the Pirates to an epic seven-game win over the Baltimore Orioles. He won both NLCS and World Series MVP honors.
Hank Aaron
Hammerin' Hank might have been the most consistent player in baseball history, hitting about 40 home runs per year for almost all of his 23 seasons with the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers. His age-37 season might have been his greatest at the plate, however, with a career-high 47 home runs and 1.079 OPS. He followed that up with 40 home runs and a 1.045 OPS at age 39. Aaron broke Babe Ruth's all-time home run record just a few games into the following season.
David Ortiz
Ortiz's OPS declined from 1.066 in his age-31 season to .794 in his age-33 season, the kind of trend that signifies a swift retirement for hulking sluggers. He rebounded nicely, however, and his final seasons were some of the best of his career.
Always a star in the World Series, Ortiz might have outdone himself in 2013, when he was 37 years old. He hit .688 with a 1.948 OPS on his way to winning World Series MVP. Even in his final season at age 40, Ortiz was still dominant, leading the league in OPS (1.021), doubles (48) and RBIs (127).
Nolan Ryan
Nolan Ryan and striking people out: Name a better duo. That maxim remained true even in his 40s. Ryan led the league in strikeouts every year from his age-40 to age-43 seasons. The Ryan Express would keep chugging along until he was 46 years old.
Roger Clemens
Clemens put on a power-pitching clinic as he entered his 40s. Clemens became the oldest Cy Young winner in 2004, capturing the award a few months after he turned 42 by posting an 18-4 record with a 2.98 ERA. He might have been even better the next season, dropping his ERA to 1.97 and giving up only 6.4 hits per nine innings.
Randy Johnson
At an age when most pitchers are slowing down, Randy Johnson was just getting started. Over four seasons from age 35 to 38, he put up the following line: 81-27 record, a 2.48 ERA, 12.4 strikeouts per nine innings and only 0.9 home runs per nine innings. Not surprisingly, he won the Cy Young award four straight times during that stretch. He added a World Series title and MVP during his age-37 season in 2001.
Though he never reached those heights again, his numbers from 39 to his retirement in his age-45 season (79-60, 3.91 ERA, 9 SO/9) are nothing to sneeze at.
Satchel Paige
Though we now know that Satchel Paige was 45 years old in 1952, folks at the time weren't quite sure of his exact birth date. Regardless, he was incredible for the St. Louis Browns that season, throwing a league-leading 35 complete games, going 12-10 with a 3.07 ERA and becoming the first Black pitcher to make an American League All-Star team.
Incredibly, Paige returned for a one-game stint for the Kansas City Athletics in 1965, when he was 58 years old. He pitched three innings, striking out one and giving up a single hit, before walking off to a standing ovation.
NHL
Wayne Gretzky
If Gretzky had never scored a goal in the NHL, he'd still be No. 1 all time in points based on assists alone. Even in the last few years of his career, The Great One could still find the open man. He led the league in assists in his age-36 and age-37 seasons and ranked sixth in his final year at 38 years old.
