Zdeno Chara, Tom Brady Pose For Photo At TB12 Grand Opening

By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) -- Standing at 6-foot-9, Zdeno Chara is usually the one who casts a shadow. But with the 42-year-old sharing a sports town with fellow 42-year-old Tom Brady, Chara's work, dedication, diet and workout routine can sometimes get overshadowed in Boston.

To be sure, how both athletes have continued to excel at their respective sports as captains of their respective teams is nothing short of incredible. As such, Chara made sure to be in attendance on Tuesday night when Brady rolled out the red carpet for the grand opening of his new TB12 center on Boylston Street.

And in what could one day go down as an iconic Boston sports photographs, the two posed for a photo together on the red carpet.

The Instagram account for tb12sports shared the photo with the caption, "Age is just a number!"

Chara shared it to his own Instagram story, too:

At 6-foot-4, Tom Brady isn't exactly what most people would consider "short." Nevertheless, standing next to the longtime Bruins captain, Brady said he had to stand on his toes to try to even out the height differential.

With two health and performance centers now in operation, plus a cookbook and "The TB12 Method" book, Brady's essentially gone on world tours to promote his own brand of wellness and performance. As he's coming off a Super Bowl victory and already has five touchdowns with no interceptions on the young season, it's clearly working.

Chara has always been among the hardest-working athletes in the universe, and he has likewise been open about his recent change to a plant-based diet. It's working for him, too, as he averaged the third-highest time on ice among all Bruins skaters last season, eventually playing through a broken jaw in the Stanley Cup Final.

Chara gushed about Brady back in May, during the Bruins' playoff run.

"Obviously we all admire Tom and what he's been able to accomplish, the Patriots, the whole organization, the team and players and the coaching staff," Chara said during the Cup Final. "They've been doing it for a decade, they've been on top of their game. It's not a secret that he's one of those world athletes that everybody looks up to. He's been very successful in what he does and how he prepares himself. He's a true professional and obviously a great human being and very smart and well spoken. I only have great experiences talking to him. I really admire him."

Brady shared the photo to his own Instagram story on Wednesday morning, noting that "us 40+ year olds gotta stick together."

Brady's been a captain of the Patriots since 2002, and Chara's been the captain of the Bruins since his arrival in Boston in 2006. Both are for sure headed to the Hall of Fame when their playing careers do eventually end. But for now, both athletes are enjoying life from a pretty strong perch in their respective sports, defying the effects of aging that have forced countless men before them to walk away from professional sports.

In:
• Zdeno Chara
• Boston Bruins
• NHL
• NFL
• Tom Brady
• New England Patriots