Not all events age equally. Some disciplines are remarkably forgiving of age — athletes can maintain high age grades well into their 70s and beyond.
Events that age well
Endurance events tend to retain age grade best. Masters distance runners often record their best-ever age grades in their 40s and 50s. Middle distance events and throwing events like hammer and shot put can also be kind to age.
Events where age grade declines more sharply
Sprint events — particularly 100m and 200m — see steeper declines because fast-twitch muscle fibre loss accelerates with age. Jumps requiring explosive power and technical precision also become harder to maintain.
What this means for event selection
Many masters athletes find that transitioning from sprint to middle distance events as they age allows them to maintain high age grades and competitive success for longer.
The bottom line
Age grading by event reveals the different ways the human body adapts to — and resists — the effects of age, and offers every masters athlete a data-driven way to find their optimal competitive events.
➡ See your potential across events at themasterathlete.com/
