Olympics for Seniors … The National Senior Games

With the 2013 National Senior Games in Cleveland, Ohio, having come to an end, here is information for anyone who may be interested in attending the 2015 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota, Senior Games as either a spectator or a participant.

BadmintonIf you are interested in visiting the Twin Cities area to cheer on competitors and pay tribute to senior fitness, the best advice is … don’t wait too long to start planning. According to a press release announcing the Twin Cities area as host of the 2015 National Senior Games, more than 35,000 people are expected to attend the Games, scheduled to take place over 16 days in July of 2015.

Official dates and event schedules for the 2015 games have not been announced, but information will become available at the National Senior Games Association website. You can also telephone 1-216-621-0600 for information about the 2015 National Senior Games.

Olympics for Seniors

The National Senior Games are for athletes of the highest caliber. Formerly called the Senior Olympics, the Senior Games attract competitive athletes who meet stringent qualification standards. The recent Games in Cleveland even attracted a competitor who won an Olympic gold medal as recently as 2000.

Dot Richardson was a member of US women’s softball teams that won gold medals in Atlanta and Sydney in 1996 and 2000. Now 51, Richardson competed as a golfer in this year’s Senior Games.

This exemplifies what the Senior Games represents to many people: an opportunity to start something new. Many people who never played competitive sports during their younger years learn about the Senior Games—catering to athletes from 50 all the way to 100 and older—decide they’re going to get fit, and start training in earnest.

How to Qualify

Most National Senior Games competitors earn the right to participate by taking part in State Games the year before National Senior Games are held. This means that if you want to qualify for the 2015 National Senior Games in Minnesota, you should start planning to participate in your state’s (or another state’s) State Games next year.

In most events the top four state-level finishers in each age group qualify for the National Senior Games, but there are exceptions. For example, all finishers in triathlon qualify for the national competition, while some events have minimum performance qualifying standards regardless of position.

For more complete information about qualifying for the National Senior Games, visit the National Senior Games Administration FAQ page.

For a refresher on Senior Games sports, events, and age groups, see our previous post.

Remember, whether you’re thinking about going to Minnesota in 2015 as a spectator or an athlete, your Medicare supplement plan will travel with you. Even if you decide while you’re there to venture a little further north into Canada, there are Medigap plans that can protect you across the border, too.

The National Senior Games Association also holds the Winter National Senior Games annually. Stay tuned.

Is there a Senior Games sport or event that kindles your competitive fire? Leave a comment!

© 2013 MedicareMall.com

One thought on “Olympics for Seniors … The National Senior Games

  1. The TSGA sends newsletters and information about the games using the e-mail information in the Games Registration program. Recently TSGA sent an important message about the 2012 Tesas State Senior Games to all Senior Athletes with a Texas mailing address. A number of these messages were blocked by the recipient’s spam blocker. If you use a spam blocker and you wish to receive games related e-mails from TSGA please set your spam blocker to accept messages from [email protected].

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