Cristiano Ronaldo welcomed his 40th birthday donning a £4,000 compression boot, which indicates he still plans on playing football well into the fifth decade of his life.
Ronaldo is still scoring goals while playing for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, and leading the line for the side he signed for in January 2023 having left Manchester United.
The veteran has scored 23 goals and assisted four times this season and is leading the Saudi Pro League in goal contributions, with his side currently third in the league standings.
He moved to Saudi after falling out with former United manager Erik Ten Hag, who he accused of disrespecting him in an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan before his Old Trafford departure.
Although the Saudi league does not grab as many eyeballs as European football, it is commendable what Ronaldo is able to do at his age, with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner still going strong.
The Portuguese star is not the only athlete to continue their career into their 40s and achieve great things. Here, Mail Sport takes a look at some of the others.
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated his 40th birthday on Wednesday – and is showing no sign of slowing down
The forward is still scoring goals and leading the line for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Arabian league
He was gifted a stunning custom-made cake by Al-Nassr at training to celebrate his birthday
Tom Brady
Tom Brady ended his career as one of the most decorated quarterbacks in NFL history.
He won his first Super Bowl at the age of 24, but his long career saw him repeat the feat six more times with two of them coming after the age of 40.
Brady’s last Super Bowl win came in his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the legendary QB became the oldest Super Bowl MVP at the age of 43, when he helped his side win the trophy in 2020.
After 22 seasons, Brady finally announced his retirement on February 1, 2022. However, just 40 days later he made a comeback and became the oldest quarterback to start an NFL game.
In what was his final season, Brady was unable to inspire the Buccaneers to another Super Bowl win, which led to him deciding to retire from the game for good on February 1, 2023.
Tom Brady ended his career as one of the most decorated quarterbacks in NFL history
Brady became the oldest quarterback to start an NFL game when he came out of retirement in 2022 in his mid-40s
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar entered the NBA as one of the most decorated college basketball players after helping the University of California win three National Collegiate Athletic Association championships.
He lived up to his expectations when joining the NBA and delivered the Milwaukee Bucks their first-ever championship, also starring for the Lakers, helping them win five championships in his time there.
Playing for the Lakers, Abdul-Jabbar had a plethora of talent on his roster, but they faced some tough sides throughout his career.
He became the oldest Finals MVP when he won the award after his performance in the 1985 Finals against Celtics at the age of 38.
He continued playing after that and won two more championships in 1988 and 1989 after turning 40, while also making it into the All-Star team in his final two seasons.
He won two championships in 1988 and 1989 after turning 40, also making it into the All-Star team in his final two seasons
Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods introduced himself to the world in style when he became the youngest Masters winner in 1997 at Augusta National in record-breaking fashion.
After a promising start, all eyes were on Woods and he was able to live up to the hype as he won a hatful of trophies throughout his career.
In 2019, Woods became the second-oldest to win the Masters at the age of 43 – his first major win since 2008, which sent a message that he still had a lot left in his tank.
Woods, though, suffered a serious accident in 2021 – but he made a return in 2022 and continues playing the game at the highest level.
Tiger Woods became the second-oldest player to win the Masters at the age of 43 in 2019
George Foreman
George Foreman was widely known as ‘Big George’ in boxing, for no reason more than his extraordinary boxing ability.
He won a gold medal in the heavyweight division at the 1968 Mexico Olympics and proved his prowess once again when he defeated Joe Frazier to win his first Heavyweight championship in 1973.
Foreman lost the title to Muhammad Ali in 1974, but he carried on fighting and, in 1994, after several other victories, beat Michael Moorer and win another heavyweight championship.
Foreman was controversially stripped off the title after refusing a rematch that the IBF scheduled against Axel Schulz, but he continued boxing for a few more years before eventually retiring at the age of 48.
George Foreman retired at the age of 48, winning a heavyweight championship in his mid-40s
His most famous fight was his defeat by Muhammad Ali in 1974, but he recovered to win another title 20 years later
Dara Torres
Dara Torres is regarded as one of the greatest women Olympian swimmers in American history.
She won 12 Olympic medals, but what grabbed the attention of everyone was her performance during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At the age of 41, Torres became the oldest swimmer to be part of the US swim team.
She added to her legacy when she won silver medals in all three events she participated in during the Games: 50metre freestyle, 4×100metre medley relay, and 4×100metre freestyle relay.
American swimmer Dara Torres win three silver medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics
Martina Navratilova, meanwhile, won the mixed doubles at the US Open at 49 in 2006
Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova had one of the greatest careers in tennis, spanning over 30 years.
Her illustrious career included 18 Grand Slam single titles, 31 Grand Slam doubles titles and 10 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles.
Navratilova set a record in 2003 when she was part of the winning team on the mixed doubles team at both the Wimbledon and US Open, aged 48.
She went on to break her own record when she won the mixed doubles title at the US Open in 2006 with Bob Bryan just a few months before her 50th birthday.
Although Navratilova did compete in many singles tournaments after turning 40, her achievements in the doubles and mixed doubles tournaments are regarded as sensational considering the competitors she was playing against at her age.
