PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) — The oldest athlete at the Pyeongchang Games is 51-year-old Canadian curler Cheryl Bernard.

She and a slew of other middle-aged Olympians credit consistency, better knowledge of nutrition and age-won wisdom for the longevity of their careers.

And longer careers may soon become the norm for elite athletes, with huge advances in sports medicine helping Olympians stay competitive into middle age. It's defying the idea that the Games are reserved for the young.

Huge advances in sports science in the past 10 to 15 years have produced better understanding of what causes the breakdown of an athlete's body, and how to delay it.

 

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