The health benefits of leisure-time physical activity are well known, however 
the effects of engaging in competitive sports on health are uncertain. This 
literature review examines mortality and longevity of elite athletes and 
attempts to understand the association between long-term vigorous exercise 
training and survival rates. Fourteen articles of epidemiological studies were 
identified and classified by type of sport. Life expectancy, standardised 
mortality ratio, standardised proportionate mortality ratio, mortality rate, and 
mortality odds ratio for all causes of death were used to analyse mortality and 
longevity of elite athletes. It appears that elite endurance (aerobic) athletes 
and mixed-sports (aerobic and anaerobic) athletes survive longer than the 
general population, as indicated by lower mortality and higher longevity. Lower 
cardiovascular disease mortality is likely the primary reason for their better 
survival rates. On the other hand, there are inconsistent results among studies 
of power (anaerobic) athletes. When elite athletes engaging in various sports 
are analysed together, their mortality is lower than that of the general 
population. In conclusion, long-term vigorous exercise training is associated 
with increased survival rates of specific groups of athletes.