Tucker Center Newsletter - 2010 Spring
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Did You Know?
Over 12,000 Athletes Participated In The 2009 Senior Games
While it was justifiably hard to escape wall-to-wall coverage of the
2010 Winter Olympic Games held in Vancouver, the Senior Games tend to
fly under the radar. But with 100,000 competitors over the last two
decades these games deserve at least some press! And this is a wonderful
example of how to age successfully through involvement in sport and
physical activity.
Begun in 1987, the Senior Games is the largest multi-sport event in the world for female and male athletes 50 and older. Last held in August 2009 in San Francisco, there are over 800 events in the 16-day competition. Attendance for the 2009 games was just under the record-setting event in 2007, which had 12,100 participants. Athletes can medal in any of the following activities: Archery, Badminton, Basketball, Bowling, Cycling, Golf, Horseshoes, Race Walk, Racquetball, Road Race, Shuffleboard, Softball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Tennis, Track & Field, Triathlon, and Volleyball.
What kind of impact do the Senior Games have? Hall of Fame inductee
and owner of 24 World Records, Phil Raschker from Marietta, Georgia,
says it all: “The Senior Games have given me an opportunity to compete
at the local, state, and national level...and working with the staff of
the Games [has enabled me] to motivate senior men and women to lead a
healthy lifestyle...I am also able to partner with national leaders
committed to senior health, wellness, and quality of life.”
The Senior Games are held biennially with upcoming games taking place in
Houston (2011) and Cleveland (2013). More information about the Senior
Games can be found at the National Senior Games Association’s Web site,
www.nsga.com. Locally, the Minnesota Senior Games will take place in
Alexandria, July 19-22, 2010.