Baron Pierre de Coubertin advocated life-long exercise and he practiced what he preached.  He rowed for exercise on Lake Geneva into his seventies, up to the last year of his life.  While he acknowledged that old age would ultimately intervene, he believed that the benefits of sport rose from the individual to the city and the nation, spreading its quality of life lessons across the national landscape.  The baron was a pioneer in the life-long practice of sport. And it is not a stretch to say that his legacy extends to our world today, as more and more senior citizens participate in masters events and competitions into their eighties and nineties.  This quote comes from “Educational Use of Athletic Activity,” which the baron wrote for Le Sport Suisse in 1928.

“The wear and tear of age are the only upper limit on athletic education. This is the second error we are committing these days. Sports are basically considered a thing for the young (and thus fleeting in nature), and something to be done in groups. To have an effective impact on the city, the nation, and the race, sports must be engaged in individually and for an extended period of time, insofar as possible.”