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    Can't-miss sports thru June 30

    Hardbodies galore: National Senior Games prove you're never too old to compete

    Christine Frankson
    Jun 15, 2011 | 11:00 pm
    Power walking and race walking are big sports, too, along with 5k and 10k road races and track and field activities

    If you can’t make it to the London Olympics next July, don’t worry. You can see some of the world’s best athletes pitted against each other in your own backyard. All of the true “blood, sweat and tears” moments of exquisite athleticism will be on display for the next two weeks at the Summer National Senior Games in Houston.

    Beginning this week, the city will be inundated with nearly 9,000 athletes partaking in true Olympic-level competition. The only difference is the competitors are a bit older. To be specific, all are over 50 years old and the oldest competitor is 101. Former President George H.W. Bush (age 87) and Barbara Bush (86) serve as honorary co-chairs.

    A competition for senior athletes might seem mundane, but these competitors have incredible athletic abilities. The National Senior Games, held ever two years since 1987, is the largest multi-sport event for athletes 50 and older in the world, with more than 800 competitions in 18 medal sports and 2 demonstration sports at 13 different venues around Houston.

    The George R. Brown Convention Center will serve as the primary site for the Games. Competition spreads from Katy and Fulshear to Reliant Park.

    While Houstonians are used to the summer heat and humidity, many of these athletes come from cooler climates. In preparation, the George R. Brown has received a complete Senior Games makeover. To beat the heat, 145,000 square feet of sport flooring were laid throughout the building. The GRB now houses 16 tennis courts to be the largest indoor tennis tournament in the world, along with venues for volleyball, basketball, badminton, shuffleboard, table tennis and horseshoes. Hall C of the GRB also houses the AstraZeneca Athlete Village for the athletes to enjoy entertainment and relax.

    Though the athletes are older than those headlining today’s top sporting events, they possess the talent and endurance needed for true Olympic-level competition. Many athletes competed at the collegiate level, hold masters national and world records and posses a true passion for competition. Each athlete proves that age and circumstance do not prevent an active and healthy lifestyle. Many have fought illnesses such as cancer, are veterans of war and have persevered through major injuries. Each is making the trip to Houston for a chance to compete and win a National Senior Games medal.

    There is so much going on, it may be hard to figure out it all out. Here are some highlights:

    Flame Arrival Ceremony — Thursday — various locations

    Mayor Annise Parker has declared Thursday National Senior Games Day. After an eight-day journey to historic cities throughout Texas, the Reliant Energy Torch Relay will return to Houston. The torch will travel around the reflecting pool at Hermann Plaza near City Hall at 10:30 a.m., take a lap around the bases at Minute Maid Park prior to the Astros game at 12:30 p.m., and light the 2011 Summer National Senior Games Cauldron in Discovery Green to officially kick off the Games around 8:30 p.m. Grammy Award winning singer Gloria Gaynor will perform during the Flame Arrival Ceremony, which begins around 8 p.m. (Big guess on what she'll sing? "I Will Survive," of course.)

    Celebration of Athletes— June 21 — Toyota Center

    Similar to the traditional opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games, the National Senior Games hosts a Celebration of Athletes. This year’s celebration will take place at 7 p.m. June 21 at the Toyota Center. The University of Houston symphony will play while athletes make a lap around the Toyota Center floor. Performances will also include the pop-funk style band, Fried Ice Cream. The event is free to the public.

    Darrell Green’s Long Live the Challenge Walk — June 25 — Reliant Park

    Pro football Hall of Famer and seven-time All-Pro defensive back Darrell Green will lead a 5K walk on June 25 at 7:30 a.m. at Reliant Park. The walk, free and open to all ages, is a result of a partnership among the National Senior Games Association, the Houston Local Organizing Committee for the 2011 National Senior Games presented by Humana, and Green’s WalkFitHealth Nation program.

    Watch competitors in action

    You have the opportunity to watch Olympic-level competition in a wide range of sports, from archery to volleyball for free. Among the most intriguing:

    Bowling — Friday-June 22 — Palace Lanes

    The bowling competition features one of the Games’ oldest male athletes and the oldest female athlete. Harry Pepper, 100, has competed in bowling for 62 years. (He will also take part in the caldron at Discovery Green Thursday night.) Verna Owen, 98, of Virginia, is the oldest female athlete in the Games. The bowling competitions start June 17 with men’s and women’s singles and end June 22 with mixed doubles.

    Swimming — June 25-30 — University of Houston Campus Recreation & Wellness Natatorium

    The field is packed with talented swimmers from across the country. Local athletes Graham Johnston, 79, and DeEtte Sauer, 70, are true champions. Johnston holds 85 World Masters Records. In 2005, he became the oldest man to swim from Spain to Morocco. Sauer began swimming at the age of 58, having never participated in sports in her life. Now she is a top competitor in women’s swimming, winning numerous national medals.

    The most unique competitor in this year’s Games is Vivian Stancil, 63, of California. Stancil is blind. She listens to the sound of the water against the lane ropes and wall to know where she is in the pool during each race.

    Track & Field — Friday-June 24 — Humble ISD's Turner Staidum

    The oldest athlete competing in Houston is 101-year-old Trent Lane. Lane will be competing in discus, hammer throw, javelin and shot put. The Track & Field competition starts with ages 50-64 on June 17 and ends June 20. Lane will compete with athletes 65-100+ from June 21 to June 24.

    Frankson is a Houston freelance writer and communications specialist for the Houston Local Organizing Committe for the 2011 Senior Games.

    The Senior Games will take place through June 30

      
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    Remembering Big George

    Olympic champion boxer George Foreman remembered at Houston funeral

    Associated Press
    Apr 14, 2025 | 6:38 pm
    George Foreman boxer
    Photo by Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty Images
    Friends and family remembered George Foreman at his funeral on Monday, April 14.

    George Foreman was remembered Monday in a memorial service in his hometown of Houston for his legendary boxing career as well as for his love of God, family, horses and cheeseburgers and for his desire to help his fellow man.

    “He preached love all the time. That’s what this life is all about. It’s all about love and George was pure because George lived and believed what he preached,” said James Douglas, a longtime friend and former president of Texas Southern University in Houston.

    During a nearly 1½ hour memorial service, Foreman’s family and friends recalled anecdotes about a man who was a two-time boxing heavyweight champion but who was also a pastor who delivered life affirming sermons at his church in northeast Houston and a savvy businessman best known for the George Foreman Grill.

    Foreman even addressed the crowd posthumously at the Wortham Theater Center, a performing arts center that hosted the memorial, with audio messages recorded previously.

    “Winning and losing can never assure a lasting smile. But saying to the face you see daily, ‘I did my best,’ can,” Foreman said on the recording.

    Many of the people who spoke at the memorial, including George Foreman IV, one of five sons of the boxing legend, highlighted the importance of faith in the elder Foreman’s life and how God guided his efforts to help others.

    “’How well do I remember how Jesus brought me through? I prayed, I walked a night or two. I said, Lord, why don’t you take and use me? That’s all that I can do. I give my life to Jesus, what about you?’ That was a song my grandmother gave to my father. He was going through a hard time. So now I’ve given it to you,” George Foreman IV said as his four brothers stood behind him.

    Foreman had 12 children, including five sons who are all famously named George Edward Foreman.

    “Rest well, dad. We will carry your love with us always,” said George Foreman IV, who is also a pastor.

    Former boxer Michael Moorer, who Foreman defeated in 1994 to become the oldest man at age 45 to win the heavyweight championship, told the crowd that the two went from being competitors to having a relationship “built on respect for over 30 years.”

    “George was a champion in life. His faith transformed the shy country boy from Texas to a successful businessman and a voice for the less fortunate,” Moorer said.

    Dr. Adan Rios, a longtime friend of the boxing great, recalled how Foreman bought land to create a food bank for AIDS patients and donated $1.7 million to help treat adolescent patients with cancer.

    Foreman died on March 21 at age 76. Foreman’s family has not disclosed his cause of death, only saying on social media that he “peacefully departed … surrounded by loved ones.”

    Born in Marshall, Texas, Foreman was raised in Houston’s Fifth Ward, one of the city’s historically Black neighborhoods.

    He began his boxing career as an Olympic gold medalist in 1968, turning pro the next year.

    Foreman became the heavyweight champion of the world when he beat Joe Frazier in 1973. But he lost the title the following year when Muhammad Ali beat Foreman in the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” fight in Zaire.

    Foreman then gave up boxing and after a religious awakening, became an ordained minister in 1978. He began preaching in Houston, later founding The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ in 1980.

    The middle-aged fighter returned to the ring after a 10-year absence and in 1994 pulled off one of the most spectacular knockouts in boxing history, flooring Moorer — 19 years his junior — with a surgical right hand to claim Moorer’s two heavyweight belts.

    Foreman retired in 1997 with a 76-5 career record.

    He then moved on to the next chapter in his life as a businessman, pitchman and occasional actor.

    He became known to a new generation as the face of the George Foreman Grill. The simple cooking machine sold more than 100 million units and brought him more wealth than boxing. A biographical movie based on his life was released in 2023.

    “Of all the traits that I could mention, his faith, his family, his boxing career, his business career, the one that stands out to me as a friend of George Foreman, he never forgot where he came from,” said Houston Mayor John Whitmire.

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