On Wednesday, May 7, at 1 p.m. when the opening ceremony at UTC's McClelland Gym kicks off this year's Tennessee Senior Olympic District Games, 85-year-old Warren Barger, 80-year-old Charlie Baker, 75-year-old Teresa Richie, 65-year-old Alice Tym, and others will be vying for another chance at national gold.

The youngest players are in the 50-55 age category. The age categories continue in five year intervals and go beyond 100 plus years.

Mitzi Huskins, and her ‘50 something’ women's volleyball team the Loco Chicks, competed in last summer in their first National Senior Olympic Games, held in Louisville, Ky., after winning the district and qualifying at the state level. “The name gets people’s attention because it promotes the crazy notion of 50 year old “chicks” playing and winning in national level volleyball competition,” said Ms. Hunter, the team’s captain.

The team was formed when several of the women turned 50 at the same time, and who wanted to play what Ms. Hunter refers to as “good volleyball.” “This is not your back yard variety of volleyball. The game rules are sanctioned by the US Volleyball Association and we practice every week to perfect the new rotations and strategies we learned at nationals,” said Ms. Hunter.

The district and state Senior Olympic Games are played yearly, but the national competitions occur every other year. The Loco Chicks placed second in the state in 2006 which qualified them for the 2007 national event. This year’s state winners will qualify for the 2009 National Senior Olympics to be held in San Francisco, Ca.

A tennis player and coach all her life, Alice Tym, age 65, recalls someone at a sporting goods store encouraging her to buy a table tennis paddle 10 years ago. “The nest was empty, I had time, and wanted to do something different,” said Ms. Tym.

Since participating in the Senior Olympics Ms. Tym has participated in the sports of badminton, track and field events, as well as table tennis. In one national meet, a scheduling error had her throwing the discus in the men’s event and this put her next to track and field champion Jay Sylvester. According to Ms. Tym, there is a growing trend where athletes who were Olympic stars and medal contenders in their youth are now returning to their sports.

She points out that her participation in Senior Games has lead to other things. “Every sport has its own fraternity, discipline, lingo, and I have made friends with people from all over the country and the world who share these sports and common pursuits,” said Ms. Tym. “I get to see these folks and communicate with them on a fairly regular basis and it is great fun.” Ms. Tym participates in other national sports association competitions as well as the Senior Games. “The competition is certainly physically challenging, but it is also mentally challenging and that is a benefit,” said Ms. Tym, who is still a Geography Professor at UTC.

Teresa Richie, age 75, got involved in Senior Games 15 years ago when Frances B. Wyatt (for whom the City’s Colville Street Recreation Center is named) was looking for women to play softball. Now Ms. Richie plays basketball, softball, volleyball, bowls, and does ballroom dancing. Since getting involved, she has gone to the National Senior Games every year that she’s competed and is in the Greater Chattanooga Sports Hall of Fame.

“I am a competitive person and playing sports is what keeps me going,” said Ms. Richie. “I believe that doing things you’re interested in keeps a person active…just walking or exercising gets boring…I like the challenge of the game.”

Another thing that keeps Ms. Richie going is the fact that her four siblings (all in their 60’s) also participate and their mother at age 95 still comes to watch them compete. “My mom managed softball teams that went to national competitions and she was one of the first people to be inducted into the Chattanooga Sports Hall of Fame. My 69-year-old brother is my ballroom dance partner. In the summer of 2006, I got to dance with a “Dancing with the Stars” instructor at the state games, won the silver, and enjoyed a great opportunity at nationals this past summer.”

Charlie Baker, age 80, a retired DuPont marketing executive, brought back two gold medals (400 meter and 400 x 100 meter relay) and three silvers (100, 200 meters and the long jump) from last summer’s National Games. No stranger to Olympic winning, Mr. Baker has competed in national games and even more district and state qualifiers for over 15 years.

Mr. Baker enthuses that he got into the Senior Games in 1992 playing volleyball with friend Warren Barger. “He taught me the rules and got me started.” Now Mr. Baker competes in these track and field events: 100, 200, and 400 meter races, long jump, high jump, discus, javelin, as well as volleyball, racquetball, and plans to also compete in the softball throw at next week’s district competition. “I try to do something everyday. I go to the ‘Y’ five days a week to work on my legs. I am fortunate and grateful to have the time to do these things. We don’t quit playing because we get old, we get old because we quit playing.”

“When people tell me I’m in my second childhood, I tell them this is my first,” said Warren Barger, who was never involved in sports or athletics in his youth. “I threw my first discus at 83 and I tell people…just because they haven’t done it, doesn’t mean they can’t.” At last summer’s National Games, Mr. Barger not only won the gold medal for high jump in his age category, he set a new record.

Although he is still an active player and competitor in badminton, volleyball, track and field events, Mr. Barger is highly regarded as a patient teacher and coach. At 85, Mr. Barger jokes, “there’s not that much competition at my age, so I enjoy watching the folks I’ve helped win national titles, that is very rewarding. I have folks in their 40’s who tell me they can’t wait to turn 50 so they can become a part of this program.”

Mr. Barger also talks about his older sister 89-year-old Irene Arnold who is a national gold medal badminton champion. Together they won four gold medals in badminton, both in singles events and as a team in mixed doubles at last year’s national games.

Mr. Barger is involved in helping to run tournaments, raise funds for out-of-the area competitions, provide skills clinics for interested players, and stresses the importance of giving back.

Applications for the Senior Olympics District Games are available in February, March, and April prior to the May Games and can be gotten via the City’s Parks and Recreation Department Sports Division and Alexian Brothers Senior Neighbors.

“There are 10 districts represented state-wide, the number of participants to our district Senior Games and the number of local folks going on to state and national meets is growing,” said Richard West, the City’s Sports Coordinator. In last summer’s national competition Tennessee was within the top three states in terms of the number of delegates participating.

The Chattanooga Parks and Recreation Department provides facilities and staff for the district competitions. Alexian Brothers Senior Neighbors and Blue Cross Blue Shield are also key sponsors who also work with the Tennessee State Senior Olympics organization. The YMCA and McCallie School also provide facilities.

The City of Chattanooga has several facilities where senior sports teams practice and that also offer senior adult fitness programs. They are: Frances B. Wyatt in North Chattanooga, North Chattanooga Recreation Center, The Chattanooga Fitness Center in Warner Park, the Eastgate Senior Activities Center, the North River Civic Center in Hixson, the Avondale and Carver Recreation Centers in East Chattanooga, the Brainerd Recreation Center, and the Shepherd Recreation Center in East Brainerd.