In the world of tennis, the prevailing wisdom is that a 34-year-old competitor is well past his or her prime. Tennis is a sport that relies on the boundless energy of a teenager or the slightly more experienced, but still energetic as ever, adult in their 20s. By the mid-30s it's time to retire, no questions asked. But Sunday, 34-year-old Andre Agassi broke all those rules and stereotypes by beating Lleyton Hewitt, 22, to take the winner's trophy at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Mason.

With his breakthrough win, trophy above his head and smiling, Agassi changed the "younger is better" mold. The crowd loved it, supporting their "old man" during his rise through the ranks. For the fans, it had nothing to do with age. They just wanted great tennis. And that's what Agassi gave them.

Sports today are changing, keeping fans and media on their toes. The underage crowd, once valued for their enthusiasm and vitality, are slowly being replaced by a much more experienced and settled age group. Even in gymnastics, where pixie-sized pre-pubescent girls are groomed to be winners, the rules are no longer the same. Gymnast and Cincinnati native Mohini Bhardwaj will be competing in Athens this year at what had been thought of as the over-the-hill age of 26.

The Western & Southern Financial Masters, a key tournament on the professional tennis circuit, is one of the biggest local sporting events of the year. Despite a few rainy days, more than 120,000 people made it to the bright blue outdoor tennis courts over the course of the week to watch one of the sport's great comebacks.

Agassi had not won a major tournament in 16 months and had dropped from No. 1 to No. 11 in the rankings over the past year. Attention was focused on younger powerhouses such as Roger Federer and Andy Roddick. But despite all the hype, both the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, respectively, lost. Federer surprisingly fell out in the first round against Dominik Hrbaty and Roddick lost in the semifinals to Agassi himself. It's out with the new and in with the old.

Before Agassi won, the question had been "Will you retire after this tournament?" But filled with a new sense of confidence, Agassi has raised the bar and opened the door to older athletes. He may not be leaving the courts anytime soon.