The age excuse that Ronaldo refuses to accept

When Cristiano Ronaldo scored a brace against Uzbekistan at the ongoing World Cup and declared, “I am back”, Zlatan Ibrahimovi? “didn’t understand” why he said that. Others interpreted it as a message to rivals and critics. It may simply have been a message to himself. Even for one of the greatest footballers in history, self-doubt is an inevitable companion. The body slows. Recovery takes longer. Younger opponents arrive with fresher legs and fewer aches. Yet there he was, at 41, still refusing to surrender centre stage. Not far away in the sporting universe, 44-year-old Serena Williams is preparing to walk once more onto the sacred lawns of Wimbledon.

Most people her age struggle to rise from a sofa after an afternoon nap. Serena is preparing to trade serves with athletes young enough to be her children. Their stories invite an uncomfortable question: what exactly are the rest of us doing? For many ordinary mortals, ageing begins at 30. By 35, the knees are blamed for avoiding exercise. By 40, climbing a flight of stairs is treated as a form of mountaineering. Somewhere between office chairs, food-delivery apps and endless scrolling on mobile phones, we have convinced ourselves that deterioration is natural and effort optional. Ronaldo and Serena expose that comforting illusion.

To be clear, they are genetic outliers blessed with extraordinary talent. But talent alone does not explain longevity. What separates them from the rest is a level of discipline bordering on obsession. While most people negotiate with alarm clocks, they negotiate with pain barriers. While many seek shortcuts, they embrace routines. While the average person is calculating how little effort is necessary, they are asking how much more can be extracted from mind and body. The irony is that neither needs to continue. Both possess wealth beyond imagination, global fame and legacies secured for generations.

They could be spending their days on yachts, golf courses or tropical beaches. Instead, they choose gruelling training sessions, strict diets, constant scrutiny and the possibility of failure. Why? Because excellence is addictive. The greatest competitors are not chasing money or applause. They are chasing the satisfaction of discovering whether there is still another level to reach. Their true opponent is not a younger striker or a harder-hitting opponent. It is time itself. That is the lesson for the rest of us.

No one is asking ordinary people to train like Ronaldo or return to Wimbledon like Serena. But perhaps we can stop using age as an excuse before it has even arrived. If a 41-year-old footballer can sprint past defenders and a 44-year-old tennis icon can prepare for the sport’s grandest stage, surely the rest of us can manage a morning walk, a healthier meal or a few flights of stairs. The real contest, after all, is not against ageing. It is against surrendering to it too soon.