Senior Olympians will welcome back the first coordinator/director of their Games when the event is held for the 17th time next week.
There will be activity on each day of the Central Wisconsin Senior Olympics, starting Monday, May 21, and continuing until Thursday, May 24. A pancake breakfast Monday morning beginning at 9 o'clock at CenterPoint Mall opens the week. A banquet on Thursday evening at 6 o'clock at the Blue Top Restaurant closes the special week.
Highlighting the pancake breakfast will be the appearance of Judy Lokken who started the Senior Olympics for the sponsoring Portage County Department of Aging in September 1984. Lokken, now of Sturgeon Bay, coordinated Senior Olympics for several years. She served as Senior Center director of Lincoln Center for 21 years, retiring in 1999.
Lokken will give a brief message to Senior Olympians on the value of physical fitness at the opening ceremonies. She is qualified to speak on the subject. Besides involvement in administering the event in its early years, she has throughout her life advocated and practiced physical fitness, if not for competitive reasons, then by her lifestyle which includes walking, skiing and sailing.
Also on the Monday program, hopefully, will be state Sen. Kevin Shibilski and state Rep. Julie Lassa, D-Plover, area representatives in the Wisconsin Legislature, which in 1991 declared the fourth week of May as Senior Olympics Week. Stevens Point Mayor Gary Wescott will welcome breakfast participants. Robert Schmidt, president of M & I Bank, the major financial sponsor of the Olympics, will share statistics for this year's event and then issue the call to "Let the Games Begin." Master of ceremonies will be Lynn Van Dien, a member of the planning committee. As in past years, pre-breakfast music will be provided by the Grenadiers German Band.
Kathy Fandre is the present coordinator of the Senior Olympics for the Department of Aging. Assisted by Dorothy Wroblewski, Fandre's committee consists of Dorothy Francis, Joe Graceffa, Anne Klesmith, Will Lehner, Lorraine Lundgren, Elsie Mielke, Matt Otte, David Parish, Ray Potocki, John Roberts, Audrey Schmeeckle, Rus Stimac, Betty Trainer, Garth Whittaker, Marcie Wilkes and Van Dien. All are from the Stevens Point area except Stimac who is from Wisconsin Rapids.
Senior Olympic officials are hoping to reach the 200 mark in participation for the first time. A record 192 took part a year ago. That figure included 102 men and 90 women. Olympians mostly come from Stevens Point and surrounding area (Plover, Whiting, Hull, Linwood, Custer and Bancroft). But other Portage County communities - Almond, Amherst, Junction City and Rosholt - always have been represented. Participants also came from Marshfield, Mosinee, Waupaca, Wausau and Wisconsin Rapids a year ago.
Olympic competition begins with bowling (75-plus are expected) on Monday at 1 p.m. at Skipp's Bowling Center. Participants bowl a three-game series. At the same time and also at Skipp's, 8-ball pool is on the schedule. Monday's program also includes miniature golf. Another one of the Olympics' most popular activities (there were 63 a year ago), miniature golf will be held this year for the first time at CERA Park on Highway P. Play begins at 5:30 p.m.
Tuesday's program includes horseshoes and shuffleboard. Both take place at the Lincoln Center. Horseshoes is scheduled on the south lawn at 11 a.m. Shuffleboard is played inside and starts at 1:30 p.m.
The biggest event on the Olympic schedule is golf, and it will take place on Wednesday for the second year in a row at the Wisconsin River Country Club. Well over 100 are expected to golf (there were 112 last year). Competition (nine holes) starts at 9 a.m. There also will be putting competition for interested golfers.
Tennis also is on the schedule for Wednesday. Competition takes place beginning at 9 a.m. at the Sentry World facilities (outdoors). Friday, May 25, is the rain date.
Track & field concludes the activity portion of the week on Thursday at Goerke Park (with K.B. Willett Arena reserved in case of inclement weather). Field events start at 9 a.m. They include basketball shooting, Frisbee throw, beanbag toss, softball throw (accuracy and distance) and mini-football throw. Track events, 400 and 1,600 meters, begin about 10:30 a.m. There also will be an 800-meter non-competitive walk.
The awards banquet on Thursday evening will feature announcement of ribbon winners in the nine events on the program. Entertainment at the banquet will be provided by Lawrence Kollauf on the harmonica.
Olympics competition is separate for men and women. The first three finishers in four age divisions in all events (except where entries are minimal) will receive ribbons. The age brackets are 55-61, 62-69, 70-76 and 77 and over. Golf awards go to players for both gross and net scores. Bowling awards are given for both scratch and handicap scores. There is both an experienced and a novice division in horseshoes. There also will be Grand winners in the large participation activities of golf, bowling and miniature golf. Track & field also has a Grand winner, but the five events in the field portion of the program will be treated as one for purposes of first, second and third-place ribbons.
Deadline for entering the Olympics was this week although late entries can still be accepted except in bowling or golf. Interested persons (anyone 55 years of age or older) may register at the Lincoln Center, 1519 Water St. There is a small registration fee as well as nominal fees for some of the events and for the awards banquet. The pancake breakfast is free for all who pay the registration fee.