Brett Favre After retiring from the NFL (twice), Brett Farve returned to the league in 2009the same year he turned 40. He led the Minnesota Vikings to the NFC Championship Game before retiring in 2010, supposedly for good this time. Christian Petersen - Getty Images
Jerry Rice Jerry Rice turned 40 in 2002 and continued playing in the NFL until 2006. With 303 games under his belt, Rice played more than any other non-placekicker or punter in NFL history. Jed Jacobsohn - Getty Images
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar During his 20 seasons in the NBA with the Bucks and the Lakers, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and a record 19-time NBA All-Star. In fact, the Lakers went on to win the playoffs twice with him at the helm soon after his 40th birthday. He retired in 1989 at the age of 42. Stephen Dunn - Getty Images
Barry Bonds The same year Barry Bonds turned 40, he won his 7th National League MVP award. During his final season with the MLB two years later, he was an All-Star for the San Francisco Giants. While his accomplishments are no doubt impressive, he later admitted he used steroids , which may have contributed to the longevity of his career. KAZUHIRO NOGI - Getty Images
Pete Rose After turning 41, Pete Rose went on to make the NL All-Star team for the second year in a row. In 1985, at the age of 44, he broke Ty Cobb's all-time hits record with his 4,192nd hit during a game against the Padres. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
Dara Torres At 41, Dara Torres took home three silver medals from the 2008 Beijing Olympics: one for the 50-meter freestyle, another for the 4100-meter medley relay, and one for the 4100-meter freestyle relay. She also volunteered to take part in an enhanced drug-testing program , saying, "I want people to know that I'm 41, and I'm doing this right. I'm clean." Christian Liewig - Corbis - Getty Images
Phil Mickelson Since turning 40 in 2010, Phil Mickelson has claimed victory at the US Open and the British Open and been inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Though he had two surgeries in 2016 which forced him to take a short break, he recovered and continued to compete. Now 49, he's still active as ever, having recently won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February. Ezra Shaw - Getty Images
George Foreman At age 45, George Foreman reclaimed the heavyweight title by winning a fight against Michael Morrer. This also made him the oldest fighter ever to win the World Heavyweight Championship title. One of the likely reasons he was able to have an impressive career well into his fourth decade is that he retired for 10 years between 1977 and 1987. Bettmann - Getty Images
Martina Navratilova At age 44, Martina Navratilova returned to the court, primarily playing doubles. She went on to win 12 more doubles titles and an additional three mixed doubles Grand Slam titles, all before turning 50. She temporarily retired from the sport for about five years, which might be part of the reason she was able to continue playing for so long. Johnny Louis - Getty Images
Jack Nicklaus The year Jack Nicklaus turned 40, he won his fourth U.S. Open and his fifth PGA championship. Six years later, at age 46, Nicklaus won his sixth Masters. In 2011, he told Golf Digest , "By 1986 I was not the player I was 15 years earlier. And I've always felt the Masters was a young man's tournament because of the speed of the greens, the firmness of the course and the demands it puts on your nerves... I might have been 46, but my nerves were still good. And I did not want to leave the game playing poorly." Central Press - Getty Images
Satchel Paige Satchel Paige officially got his start in the major leagues at the age of 42. Previously, he had played for the Negro Leagues before professional baseball was desegregated. Paige was signed to the Indians in 1948 and he went on to become the first African American pitcher to play in the World Series, when the Indians beat the Braves. Bettmann - Getty Images
Hank Aaron The year Hank Aaron turned 40 (1974), he hit his 715th home run in a game against the Dodgers, making him the home run champion of the time, edging out Babe Ruth. Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully noted why the moment was particularly impactful , given the racial tensions in the country at the time: "What a marvelous moment for baseball; what a marvelous moment for Atlanta and the state of Georgia; what a marvelous moment for the country and the world. A black man is getting a standing ovation in the Deep South for breaking a record of an all-time baseball idol." Bettmann - Getty Images
Darrell Green The two-time Super Bowl winner set a record at the age of 42 in 2002 as the oldest NFL defensive back. Shortly before this, he also set a record as the oldest player with an interception, at the age of 41. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
Harold Baines In 1999, Harold Baines was 40, but still playing like a young man. He managed 103 runs while batting .312 for the season. This same year he was named to the All-Star team for the 6th time. Owen C. Shaw - Getty Images
Ted Williams The left fielder for the Boston Red Sox spent 19 years playing baseball . However, his career was briefly interrupted by mandatory military service during World War II and the Korean War. At 41, Williams retired from baseball, hitting a home run in his final time at-bat on September 28, 1960. Getty Images - Getty Images
Dikembe Mutombo The eight-time All-Star was famous for wagging his finger after every blocked shot. After turning 40 in 2006, he became the oldest player in NBA history to record more than 20 rebounds in a game, with 22 rebounds. A year later, he managed five blocked shots and surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in total career blocked shots. Michael Tran - Getty Images
Robert Parish At age 43, Robert Parish played his final NBA season with the Chicago Bulls. He won his fourth NBA title during this season between 1996 and 1997. Bruce Bennett - Getty Images
"Babe" Didrikson Zaharias Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias was an athlete and excelled in golf, basketball, baseball, and track and field. In 1951, the year she turned 40, she won nine events on the LPGA tour . Three years later, she earned her sixth AP Female Athlete of the Year honor after winning the U.S. Women's Open, shortly after being diagnosed with colon cancer . Bettmann - Getty Images
David Wells After turning 40 in 2003, David Wells went on to sign a deal with the Boston Red Sox and took the uniform number 3, in honor of Babe Ruth. In 2006, the left-handed pitcher went back to the San Diego Padres for a second time, and then moved to the Dodgers for his final season in 2007. Lisa Blumenfeld - Getty Images
Tom Watson Two-time Masters winner Tom Watson claimed victory at the 1996 Memorial Tournament at the age of 47, before going on to gain the last of his 39 PGA Tour wins at the 1998 MasterCard Colonial. More recently, Watson won the 2018 Masters Tournament Par-3 contest at the age of 68, making him the oldest ever to win the event. R&A Championships - Getty Images
Vinny Testaverde At the age of 44, Vinny Testaverde was the oldest quarterback to win an NFL game and the second oldest to start one, playing for the Panthers as they faced the San Francisco 49ers. The Sporting News - Getty Images
Roger Clemens After turning 40 in 2002, two-time World Series Champion Roger Clemens continue to have a successful career. He was named to three more All-Star teams and won the Cy Young award in 2004. He eventually retired in 2007. Bob Levey - Getty Images
Warren Moon The year Warren Moon turned 41, he began his final season with the Seahawks. That season, he was named AFC offensive player of the week twice and went to the Pro Bowl for the ninth time in his career. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
Gaylord Perry Gaylord Perry 's 40th year was a significant one. The same year he turned 40 he received the Cy Young Award and notched his 3,000th strikeout. At 43, he earned his 300th win. In 1991, he was (rightfully!) elected into the Hall of Fame. Bettmann - Getty Images
Rickey Henderson At 40, Rickey Henderson was signed to the New York Mets and named the National League comeback player of the year. During the 2001 season, when Henderson was 43, he broke three major league career records: Babe Ruth's record of 2,062 career walks, Ty Cobb's record of 2,245 career runs, and Zack Wheat's record of 2,328 career games in left field. Jeff Carlick - Getty Images
Carlton Fisk Carlton Fisk played in the MLB until he was 45, which is unusual for a catcher (the position can be particularly hard on the body). During his last season, he broke the record for career games caught with his 2,226th game behind the plate (though his record was later broken in 2009 by Ivn Rodrguez). Owen C. Shaw - Getty Images
Charlie Hough The year Charlie Hough turned 40, he threw 252 innings and won 15 games. Five years later, he was the starting pitcher for the first game in Florida Marlins history and pitched six innings to get the win. Hough retired at 46, after an impressive 25-season career. Mitchell Layton - Getty Images
Randy Johnson At 40 years old, pitcher Randy Johnson led the National League in strikeouts, with 290. During the same season, he became the oldest pitcher in history to throw a perfect game. He was later inducted into the National League Hall of Fame in 2015. Tim Umphrey - Getty Images
Randy Couture After a brief retirement period, Randy Couture returned to the ring for a fight with heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia at the age of 43. Just eight seconds in, Couture's first punch sent Tim Sylvia to the ground , securing him the heavyweight title for a record third time. He continued fighting until he was 47, at which point he announced he was "finally done." Al Bello/Zuffa LLC - Getty Images
Nolan Ryan Nolan Ryan holds the record for the longest career in the MLB , with 27 seasons under his belt. After turning 40, he went on to make the All-Star team for the 8th time and become the Strikeout leader for the 11th time. Ryan was later inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. Icon Sportswire - Getty Images
Morten Andersen Morten Anderson currently holds the record for the most NFL games ever played , with 382 total. At 47 years old, he became the oldest player to score 14 points in a game, and the oldest player to kick four field goals in a game. Not too shabby. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
George Blanda George Blanda played pro football for 26 seasonsan all-time record. At 43, while playing for the Raiders, he led the team to victory four times in a five-game period with last-second touchdown passes or field goals. He retired from the NFL a few years later, at 48. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
Chris Chelios Not long after turning 40, Chris Chelios won a silver medal with the US Olympic hockey team, won the Stanley Cup, and played in the NHL All-Star game for the 11th time. This made him the oldest active player to win the Stanley Cup, and the second oldest player in the history of the NHL. Dave Sandford - Getty Images
Phil Niekro After turning 40, pitcher Phil Niekro recorded 121 wins, setting an MLB record. At 46, he won his 300th game with a four-hit shutout. Niekro continued his MLB career until he was 48 and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1997. Focus On Sport - Getty Images
Jamie Moyer At age 44, shortly after being traded to the Phillies, Jamie Moyer set a franchise record as the oldest pitcher to record a win. In 2008, Moyer became the oldest active player in Major League baseball at 45. His final win came when he was 49 years old, playing for the Colorado Rockies in 2012. Mark Cunningham - Getty Images
Julio Franco In 2004, when he was 46 years old, Julio Franco became the oldest regularly playing person in MLB history. He also became the oldest player in the MLB to hit a grand slam, a pinch-hit home run, and two home runs in one game. The Sporting News - Getty Images
Bernard Hopkins When he was 46, Bernard Hopkins became the oldest world champion after winning the WBC light heavyweight title in a fight against Jean Pascal. Just a few years later, in 2014, he claimed victory again and unified the WBA and IBF light heavyweight titles by beating Beirut Shumenov. Al Bello - Getty Images
Gordie Howe After turning 40, Gordie Howe continued to play for the NHL and earned his 20th and 21st NHL All-Star selections. He retired from the NHL at age 52, returning briefly at age 69 with a one-game contract with the Detroit Vipers. This made Howe the only player in hockey history to compete in six different decades at the professional level he played in the NHL, WHA, and IHL from the 1940s to the 1990s. B Bennett - Getty Images
Cheryl Bernard The Canadian Olympic curler was 44 years old when she competed at the 2010 Olympics, winning a silver medal for her team. Eight years later at the PyeongChang games, she was the fifth for Team Homan, but did not see any game action. Alex Livesey - Getty Images