Life in the Old Boys

On a cold day in February, having broken his hip slipping on the ice (well, he sprained his ankle jumping in the AAAs), Edinburgh-based old fart Steve Fleming was getting a taxi to training when he was unexpectedly set upon by the driver. "I was a sprinter when I was young", started the taxi driver, forcing Fleming to pull out his trendy iPod earphones, and totally wrecking his buzz. "Gave up when I was 33. No choice. Once you hit 30 the speed goes, doesn't it." Fleming was quick to whip out a ladder and make for the moral high-ground, having just recorded his 3rd PB in as many weeks, "How old do you think I am then?"

The great unwashed and hoi polloi in general are quick to dismiss any late-twenties performance drop as singularly being down to age, the usual theory being that the speed "goes". Athletes being incredibly gullible and vain are quick to accept this judgement and dive straight into retirement in order to avoid the ignominy of being thought of as "past it", "over the hill", or worse, "enjoying their athletics"! But in recent times, Da Cru have been fighting back against this prejudice and coming right back out of retirement.

Fleming, oldest of farts, retired back in 2000 then came back to pick up national medals in triple and long jump, and set club records in the triple and 4x100m relay. Aged 33 (clearly much too old to be a sprinting taxi driver) he ran a 60m p.b. and went head to head with the ghost of Carlos for the indoor long jump record. He also became only the second ever Irish man (after Kron) to pick up a AAA long jump medal (in the modern post-1960 era), and is hungry for more. Too old?

Giant former high-jumper Antoine Burke first applied for his bus pass at the end of last year when he turned 30 but has recently dragged his old body back into shape to pick up a medal at the indoor AAI champs 400m in 48.5s. The man known almost as much for his cooking as his athletics will certainly be challenging to repeat the feat outdoors and nab a place on the European Championships 4x400m team. Too old??

More famous, though less tall, than these two late maturing oaks of men is the great Peter Coghlan, driven into early retirement less by age than by
the vicissitudes of the system. But he's back in hard training, appropriately enough at a gated village in Florida, with European metalware in his sights. And who would doubt him. Too old??? By the standards of the previous paragraphs he's just a nipper.

Other Crusaders legends in or near their third decade include Eugene O'Neill (currently getting a hip replacement), Lorcan Carpenter, John Coghlan. All still developing. All with loads to give and hunger for pbs, medals, records, speed, power, glory.

There's no question that as you get older there are more and more obstacles in your way but a falloff in speed or strength or talent is not one of these.

The real question is where are the youngsters???