At the age of 51, Jaromir Jagr plays for his home club Rytiri Kladno in the Czech Republic’s first division.
Image: dpa
The Czech world star Jaromir Jagr is still playing top-class ice hockey at the age of 51 after 35 professional seasons, 24 of them in the NHL. Why is he doing this to himself? Jagr has a simple explanation.
An January 6, 1995, one of the best ice hockey players in the world is sitting in Gelsenkirchen eating a Jägerschnitzel with fries and mayonnaise. It’s a Friday night that many will not soon forget at the Schalke Sharks. And it’s one that can perhaps explain why Jaromir Jagr is still a professional on the ice at the age of 51. He has just managed to stay in the Czech premier league with his hometown club from Kladno – with five goals and nine assists in 26 games.
Back then, in the winter of 1995, the teams in the North American professional league NHL and the players’ union were once again fighting over the salaries of the stars. The professionals went on strike. So the then second division coach of the Schalke Haie, Peter Fiala, asked his friend Jagr if he would like to come for a game. Jagr came on, scored a goal after just a few seconds at 20:5 and then took things a little easier with ten assists. Instead of in a hotel suite, he is said to have slept on a lounger at Fiala and refused a fee for his performance.