Houston, Texas, June 30, 2011 – – The 2011 Summer National Senior Games presented by Humana came to a close today when the last disk slid down the shuffleboard court at the George R. Brown Convention Center.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the 2011 Houston Local Organizing Committee and President and CEO of Houston’s Memorial Hermann Health Care System Dan Wolterman stated, “Houston was honored to be selected as the host city for the 2011 Summer National Senior Games. Since this selection in 2008, we have worked very hard to provide these incredible athletes wonderful competition venues and an exceptional experience in our great city. On behalf of the Houston Local Organizing Committee, I want to express our gratitude to the athletes and visitors for coming to our city.”
Mayor Annise Parker also commented, “Houston has been proud to host the 2011 Senior Games. The achievements of the athletes have been truly impressive, and it’s been a pleasure to have them in our city. We won’t soon forget them or the Games, and the Cauldron will always be a reminder to us of how inspiring this experience has been.” The Senior Games Cauldron was extinguished at 4:45 this afternoon. It will be moved in the near future to the Houston Amateur Sports Park at Highway 288 and Airport Boulevard.
Over the course of the Games, the senior athletes set a total of 245 new records. They broke 208 National Senior Games Association records, 25 United States records, seven Masters and five world records. All five of the new world records were set in track and field. 2,174 medals were awarded with Texas leading with 378, followed by Florida (181) and California (151).
President and CEO of the National Senior Games Association Phil Godfrey stated, “I want to thank the leadership, staff and volunteers of the Houston Local Organizing Committee for delivering against their promises. We’ve had a very good Games. Producing this event is a huge logistical challenge in every aspect. They managed that to maximize the athlete experience throughout,” said Phil Godfrey, NSGA President & CEO. “I am so proud of the NSGA staff and our Organizing Committee partners. We had a tremendous team effort that resulted in an organized, safe and fun experience for all.”
The world’s largest multi-sport event for men and women athletes over the age of 50, the Games brought more than 10,000 athletes from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and the European Senior Games to Texas. They competed in 18 sports at 14 different venues in the Houston area over the course of 15 days.
With its motto of Long Live the Challenge, the Games are dedicated to motivating men and women to lead an active, healthy lifestyle through fitness, education and sport. Included in the competitions in the 2011 Games are archery, badminton, basketball, bowling, cycling, golf, horseshoes, race walking, racquetball, road racing, shuffleboard, softball, swimming, table tennis, tennis, track and field, triathlon and volleyball.
To compete in the National Games, athletes have competed in sanctioned state games during the last year. Separated into five year age increments, the top four finishers in each group qualified to compete in Houston. The Games took place at 14 different venues in the Houston area from June 16 to June 30.
