2016 Florida Senior Games Registration Deadline is Two Weeks Away
TALLAHASSEE – Registrations are flying in fast and furious for the 25th Anniversary Florida Senior Games, to be held in Clearwater/Pinellas County, December 3-11.
With two weeks remaining until the online registration deadline of Friday, November 18, over 1,200 athletes have already registered to compete in 24 sports over the course of the nine-day event.
For competition information and the opportunity to register online, please visit www.floridaseniorgames.com, call toll-free at 1-866-FL-GAMES (354-2637) or email [email protected].
“We had great success in Clearwater and Pinellas County last year with over 2,100 athletes competing in a non-qualifying year,” said Stephen Rodriguez, Senior Vice President of the Florida Sports Foundation. “We anticipated 2,500 or more for this year’s Games since the 2017 National Senior Games will be held in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s also a testament to the excellent athletic facilities and local amenities the area has to offer the athletes. They want to come to Clearwater.”
The Clearwater/Pinellas County area is the seventh host of the annual Florida Senior Games, an Olympic-style Sports Festival for athletes age 50 and over. Since its inception in 1992, the Games have seen more than 45,000 athletes in action.
The community with the most years of hosting the Florida Senior Games is Lee County, when Fort Myers and Cape Coral hosted for six years, from 2006-10 and 2013-14. Other communities to host more than once include Polk County and Kissimmee/St. Cloud.
Besides providing active seniors the opportunity to compete, stay physically active and develop friendships through the camaraderie of sports, the Florida Senior Games provides an economic boon to the host community.
In addition, 10 sports of the Florida Senior Games are multiple-day events that may require athletes to utilize local hotels and other businesses and amenities.
At the 2015 Florida Senior Games, athletes from 238 Florida cities, 29 U.S. states, three Canadian provinces were represented as well as The Bahamas, Great Britain and Trinidad and Tobago.
Florida Senior Games hosts through the years and participation levels
1992 – Bradenton – 712
1993 – Bradenton – 928
1994* – Bradenton – 1,764
Total: 3,404
1995 – Kissimmee/St. Cloud – 1,101
1996* – Kissimmee/St. Cloud – 2,041
1999 – Kissimmee/St. Cloud – 1,216
2000* – Kissimmee/St. Cloud – 1,568
Total: 5,926
1997 – Sarasota – 1,440
1998* – Sarasota – 2,371
Total: 3,811
2001 – Polk County – 1,487
2002* – Polk County – 2,037
2011 – Polk County – 1,850
2012* – Polk County – 2,331
Total: 7,705
2003 – The Villages – 2,387
2004* – The Villages – 2,982
2005 – The Villages – 2,575
Total: 7,944
2006* – Lee County – 2,062
2007 – Lee County – 1,664
2008* – Lee County – 2,049
2009 – Lee County – 1,857
2010* – Lee County – 2,239
2013 – Lee County – 1,946
2014* – Lee County – 2,418
Total: 14,235
2015 – Clearwater/Pinellas Co. – 2,164
Total: 3,364 and counting
* Denotes a National Senior Games qualifying year
Visit www.floridaseniorgames.com for more information and give a look to #ThrowbackThursday and #FlashbackFriday moments from 25 years Games at the Florida Senior Games Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/floridaseniorgames/
