Olympic Medalists Live Longer
More useful research
Athletes who win at the Olympics may bring home more than just a medal: They could add a few years to their life spans, scientists have found.
Winners of a gold (or silver or bronze) medal lived almost three years longer on average than their country's general population — when matched for age, gender and birth year — according to a study released Thursday by the journal BMJ that examined some 15,174 Olympic medalists.
The research follows an earlier, controversial report of an "Oscar bump" that found that actors who had won Academy Awards for leading or supporting roles from 1929 onward lived an average of 3.9 years longer than actors who hadn't snagged the coveted gold statue.