The old man and the sea

Kelly Slater, widely considered the greatest surfer of all time, has Tokyo Olympics in his sights at ripe old age of 47

At 47 years old, surfing icon Kelly Slater is old enough to be the father of some of his chiselled, tousle-haired rivals.

But when the shaven-headed American strolled up the beach after pulling off a string of gnarly moves at the World Surfing Games in Miyazaki last month, it was his name that young Japanese fans squealed as they jostled for autographs.