The COVID-19 outbreak has impacted athletes across the globe, especially those in the older age brackets.
While younger athletes still have several more seasons to look forward to once the pandemic is over, older ones aren’t nearly as lucky. In fact, several athletes likely will see their careers cut short by the crisis as sports leagues struggle to decide when its safe to resume play.
Players like NBA star Carmelo Anthony and WNBA star Sue Bird, for instance, are losing valuable time during the latter portion of their careers due to the coronavirus outbreak. And, as Bird pointed out, older athletes are at a big disadvantage with sports paused indefinitely.
“I think back one year ago and I was a totally different person body-wise,” Bird told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols during Monday’s episode of “The Jump.”
“They always say you can’t beat father time. I always joke back like, ‘I’m actually not trying to beat him. I’m just trying to tie (him).’ And if I could just stay how I am for, like, a little bit longer, (I’d) hold on a little bit longer.”
So, what’s the key to success as an older athlete?
“Listen, I’m sure all of you follow LeBron (James) on Instagram, and it seems like the wine is working,” Bird joked.
"I'm sure all you follow @KingJames on Instagram. Seems like the wine is working."@S10Bird joined @Rachel__Nichols to discuss how sports shutting down affects older players differently. pic.twitter.com/eiU3YQ72Mj
— ESPN (@espn) April 28, 2020
Now that’s an answer we definitely can get behind.
