Who is the oldest athlete to win a gold medal at the Summer Olympics?

Oscar Swahn is the oldest athlete to win a gold medal at the Summer Olympics.

The Swedish sport shooter was 64 years and 258 days old when he won gold at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. Swahn competed in the team single-shot running deer event, helping Sweden defeat its rivals in a shooting discipline that is no longer part of the Olympic programme.

Swahn had already won two gold medals at the 1908 London Olympics, in the individual and team single-shot running deer events. He also won bronze there, establishing himself as an unusually successful Olympic shooter. His son, Alfred Swahn, competed alongside him and also became an Olympic champion.

Oscar Swahn continued competing at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics at age 72, making him the oldest Olympic competitor at the time. He won a silver medal there, which also made him the oldest Olympic medallist. The separate records are sometimes confused: Swahn is the oldest gold-medal winner and oldest medallist, while age records can differ depending on whether art competitions are included.