“Mr. Impossible”
“Mr. Impossible” Andy Steinfeldt, 71, Minnetonka, Minnesota People are realizing how much more they can do and achieve in the second half of their lives, and that applies to every senior athlete who is challenging aging stereotypes. When we see stories about Senior Games athletes doing unexpected and sometimes extreme things, we take notice. In
- Published in 2020 PB, Personal Best Featured Athletes
December 2019 Athlete of the Month
Bob Messersmith, 86, San Juan Capistrano, California “If you want to be old, you’re old.” Bob Messersmith has built a senior basketball dynasty. The teams he has organized and coached have won the California Senior Games championship 18 out of 20 years. His Team USA has dominated National Senior Games in five age categories over
- Published in Athlete of the Month
Kneed for Speed – November 2019 Athlete of the Month
Kathy Meares, 70, Baton Rouge, Louisiana Kneed for Speed Kathy Meares has never needed to be told to go out and play, and her youth was filled with sports. Growing up before Title IX, the Louisiana native did not have the opportunity to earn an athletic scholarship, but she avidly competed in intramural volleyball and
- Published in Athlete of the Month
Gone, But Never Forgotten
Followers of this blog will be aware that I have dedicated my efforts to Eric Todd , one of the journalism interns from the U of Minnesota who performed well for our media center operations during the 2015 National Senior Games held in the Twin Cities. Eric posted early this year that he had stage
- Published in Moon Walking
October 2019 Athlete of the Month
James Jackson, 53, Denton, Texas Smoking the Competition It’s rare for a runner to win best overall times in both the 5K and 10K road races in a National Senior Games. It’s only happened four times in our 32-year history, most recently in 2011. Now, James Jackson of Denton, Texas joins that elite group with
- Published in Athlete of the Month
Walking in the Light
My new power walking “career” continued in October with a visit to the Huntsman World Senior Games, a huge event in St. George, Utah that draws domestic and international athletes and serves as that state’s qualifying event for the National Senior Games. Once again, I had an other-worldly experience that left me speechless – and
- Published in Moon Walking
September 2019 Athlete of the Month
Alice Walker, 87, Chester, South Carolina Nothing Keeps Alice Down If you compare Alice Walker’s lifestyle and athletic accomplishments to her history of medical issues over eight decades, you would not believe she is the same person. A horrific accident left her with limited use of her left arm. Her kidney needed to be removed.
- Published in Athlete of the Month
August 2019 Athlete of the Month
David Salazar, 69, Cedar Crest, New Mexico Performing a Lofty Role NSGA’s official highlights video from the 2019 National Senior Games presented by Humana sought to go beyond action clips and honor the athletes and the people of Albuquerque and New Mexico by selecting a local athlete to represent them in an unusual way. The
- Published in Athlete of the Month
July 2019 Athlete of the Month
Bob Shannon, 66, Alameda, CA and Jeff Johanson, 65, Arnold, CA Renewing a “Rivalry” by Chance It’s not that unusual for senior athletes to know others from their youthful sporting days who also participate in National Senior Games. But it’s quite another thing to realize that the guy in the lane next to you is someone you used
- Published in Athlete of the Month
Winning for TeamEric: The Race Within the Race Within the Race
“Where to start?” Those were my first words when I began this blog last year, and so much has transpired that I am again confounded with how to properly convey my experience and emotions on race day. But it seems appropriate to frame my experience with the 2019 National Senior Games presented by Humana (and
- Published in Moon Walking