Good food, good genes and good luck: how top athletes are competing in their 40s (opens in new tab)

Serena Williams, Lewis Hamilton and Cristiano Ronaldo are among the stars benefiting from advances in sports science, equipment and facilitiesWhen 40-year-old Luka Modrić lined up for Croatia against England on Wednesday evening, he embodied a growing trend in elite sport. A generation ago, a footballer competing at the highest level at 40 would have been a rarity, but the 2026 World Cup features a record eight players aged at least 40 – more than all previous tournaments combined.It’s not ju...