11th Eastern Shore Senior Games Scheduled April 8-10

SALISBURY, MD---From badminton to bowling to a 5K run/walk, the Eastern Shore Senior Games celebrates its 11th year with a variety of competitive activities for young-at-heart athletes.

The games are Thursday-Saturday, April 8-10, at Salisbury University’s Maggs Physical Activities Center and athletic fields, and other locations throughout the community. An opening ceremony at noon on Friday, April 9, includes the keynote address “Nutrition for Athletes Across a Lifetime” with Dr. Scott Mazzetti of SU’s Health, Physical Education and Human Performance Department.

New this year is pickleball, a mini-tennis game played by four people on a badminton-sized court using wood paddle racquets and a plastic, poly baseball with holes. Games will be played in doubles and mixed doubles format, and paddles will be supplied. A copy of the rules is available at www.pickleball.com.

Other competitions include aquatics, badminton, bowling, 40K cycling race and recreational ride, chest press, a 5K run/walk, fitness testing, floor and foul basketball shooting, golf, pump and run, table tennis, tennis, track and field, and team volleyball.

Registration for unlimited events is $60. Additional fees apply for bowling, golf and volleyball. Registration ends Monday, March 22. There is no day-of registration.

“Senior Games participants are an inspiration to us all because they’ve maintained healthy and active lifestyles,” said coordinator Dr. Carol Wood, associate dean of the Seidel School of Education and Professional Studies. “The games provide a venue where seniors can show their stuff.”

Athletes compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in age brackets based on five-year increments, beginning with ages 50-54.

According to the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, 85 percent of seniors in the United States do not exercise as much as they should. Other seniors have made staying in shape a social affair, using events like the Senior Games to keep in touch with old friends and make new ones. In recent years, more than 400 have competed in the games.

Competitions are held at the Salisbury University athletic fields and tennis courts, Maggs Gymnasium, Cherokee Lanes and Deer Run Golf Course. The Senior Games are sanctioned by the Maryland Senior Olympics Commission, Inc.  

To register or for more information, contact Dr. Carol Wood at 410-548-3256 or cawood@salisbury.edu, or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu/seniorgames.