PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — It's never too late to be a champion!
The Florida Senior Games is an Olympic-style sports festival for athletes ages 50 and over. This year's games will be held from Dec. 3 to Dec. 11 with a roster of 22 sports, according to a news release.
These games will be used as a qualifier for the 2023 National Senior Games, which will be held in Pittsburgh, Penn.
The Florida Sports Foundation, the state of Florida’s sports promotion and development organization, will host the 2022 through 2024 Florida Senior Games alongside Florida’s Sports Coast, according to a news release.
Many of the events will take place at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus in Wesley Chapel, the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in Zephyrhills, Cypress Creek High School, the Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club, the Land O' Lakes Recreation Center and Pin Chasers.
“Florida’s Sports Coast is thrilled to be the host destination for such prestigious sporting events that exhibit the level of talent of athletes 50 and older within our statewide sporting community,” Florida’s Sports Coast Tourism Director, Adam Thomas, CDME, said.
The Florida Senior Games features a wide variety of sports which include:
- Basketball
- Volleyball
- Table Tennis
- Bowling
- Powerlifting
- Racquetball
- Track and Field
- Tennis
- Archery
- Cycling
- 5K Road Race
- Pickleball
- Swimming
- and more
A new event in this year's games is Padel, a racket sport. It's normally played by doubles teams on an enclosed court with scoring like tennis. The main difference is that the court has walls and the balls can be played off of them.
Florida Senior Games athletes compete in five-year age groups beginning with the 50-54 age group and increasing through the 100+ age group, the news release states.
To find more information about dates and locations, click here.