The oldest Olympians competing at Paris 2024

Paris 2024 has brought together Olympic athletes of all ages, from the young to the young at heart.

All eyes were on 51-year-old British athlete Andy Macdonald on Wednesday, who made history as the oldest competitor in Olympic skateboarding. In a remarkable contrast of ages, Macdonald stands 35 years older than his 16-year-old teammate and double Olympic medallist, Sky Brown.

Sadly for the Team GB veteran, Macdonald finished 18th of 22 in the men’s park preliminaries on the Place de la Concorde in Paris and never remotely threatened the top eight needed to make the final. Macdonald, who began his professional skateboarding career 14 years before Team GB colleagues Sky Brown and Lola Tambling were born, had his every move cheered by the crowd – and there were boos for the judges when his modest scores – 72.07, 76.61, 77.66 – were announced, having pulled off a crowd-pleasing back-flip to finish.

Macdonald’s final act before his three runs was to shake hands with Keefer Wilson, the 17-year-old Australian who is a year younger than his son and three times younger than him.

Watch: Meet the 51-year-old Olympic skateboarder

Meanwhile, the title of the youngest athlete in Paris goes to 11-year-old Chinese skater Haohao Zheng. Not only is he the youngest competitor at Paris 2024, but he also holds the distinction of being the youngest ever Chinese Olympic athlete, adding an extra layer of significance to her participation.

Yahoo UK takes a look at the oldest Olympians competing at Paris 2024.

Juan Antonio Jimenez (equestrian), 65

Juan Antonio Jimenez, a distinguished Spanish equestrian and Olympic medalist, continues to defy age barriers as he competes in the Paris 2024 Olympics, making him the oldest participant.

He clinched a silver medal in dressage at the Athens Olympics in 2024.

Rolf-Göran Bengtsson (equestrian) – 62

Swedish show jumper Rolf-Göran Bengtsson has achieved great success in equestrian sports.

He secured a silver medal in the individual jumping event at the 2008 Summer Olympics and claimed a silver medal in the team jumping competition during the 2004 Olympics.

Ni Xia Lian (table tennis) – 61

Ni Xia Lian, representing Luxembourg, made history as the oldest table tennis player to claim a victory at the Olympics by defeating Turkey’s Sibel Altinkaya 4–2 at Paris 2024.

Originally from Shanghai, she currently resides with her husband in central Luxembourg.

Pius Schwizer (equestrian) – 61

Pius Schwizer is a Swiss equestrian competing in show jumping. His notable achievements include clinching the bronze medal in the team jumping event at the 2008 Olympics.

His win came after Norwegian rider Tony André Hansen was disqualified.

Mario Deslauriers (equestrian) – 59

Mario Deslauriers is a highly accomplished Canadian equestrian who competed in the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games. After an impressive hiatus of 33 years, he made a sensational return to the 2020 games.

His incredible journey continues as he sets his sights on the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he will be vying for victory in the Team Jumping Event.

Steffen Peters (equestrian) – 59

German-born Steffen Peters is an equestrian who represents the US in dressage. His Olympic career spans five Games, and he secured two team bronze medals in 1996 and 2016 and a team silver medal in 2020.

Zhiying Zeng (table tennis) – 58

Zhiying Zeng is a table tennis player who was born in China but now represents Chile on the international stage.

She was originally part of the Chinese team before making the transition to compete for Chile.

Who is the oldest person ever to have competed in the Olympics?

The oldest person to have competed in the Olympics is Oscar Swahn, who represented Sweden in shooting at the 1920 Summer Olympics.

Swahn was 72 years old when he won a silver medal in the running deer team event.