Tellico Village athletes brought home 46 medals across dozens of events last month during the Tennessee Senior Olympics in Franklin.
James Wilhelm, 75, earned medals in all 14 events in which he competed in the 75-79 age group.
Wilhelm took gold in the javelin and softball throw and silver in the 50- and 100-meter dash, 800- and 1,500-meter runs, 1,500-meter race walk, high jump, long jump and triple jump. Rounding out his stellar performance was a bronze in the 200- and 400-meter dash, shot put and discus throw.
As an athlete who competes in multiple events, he entered the competition wanting to set the bar higher than in previous years.
“I challenged myself this year and I was very happy with the results,” Wilhelm said. “This is my fourth year doing the Senior Olympics. I started four years ago. I did pickleball and I won a medal in that. Then in 2021, I started track and field and I ended up with three. And last year, I got eight. So I decided this year I was really gonna go for broke and I entered 14 events and I medaled in all 14 of them.”
The official record for most medals won in a single Senior Olympics event is still being verified.
Wilhelm said he doesn’t train with anyone specifically but learns a lot from YouTube videos.
While his favorite events include the shot put and 100-meter dash, he said the challenge is to train for more than one event.
“It’s kind of tough because with every event it’s somebody’s specialty,” he said. “The runners and sprinters, that’s all they do is sprint, and then the throwers, that’s pretty much all they do. The jumpers, the same thing. I’m pretty much across the board and it makes training a little tougher because I just can’t concentrate on any one thing.”
Wilhelm said he has no plans of slowing down and is looking forward to next year’s competition.
Sara Dutton, who also competed in the 75-79 age group, won gold in the 400- and 1,500-meter dash and in the 5K and 10K runs. She took silver in the 200- and 800-meter runs and bronze in the 50- and 100-meter dashes.
Ashley Fletcher brought home a bronze in the javelin in the 80-84 age group.
Other athletes who won medals included Kim Gill, Tom Piersel and Marla Short, who made their debuts in swimming.
Gill earned six medals in the 60-64 age group, including gold in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and 500-yard freestyle and silver in the 50-yard breaststroke and 50- and 100-yard backstroke.
Piersel, also in the 60-64 age group, took the gold in the 200-yard freestyle, silver in the 100- and 500-yard freestyle and bronze in the 50-yard freestyle. Short, competing in the 65-69 age group, took gold in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle.
Holly Seguine, competing in the 65-69 age group, won gold in the 50-yard butterfly and 100-yard individual medley, silver in the 200-yard individual medley and bronze in the 100-yard butterfly and 100- and 200-yard backstroke.
Tim Trader was a gold winner in his debut in archery barebow.
One of the main catalysts for getting many Village residents involved in the games is athlete John Wand.
Wand won silver medals in the 50-, 200- and 500-yard freestyle and a bronze in the 100-yard freestyle in the 70-74 age group.
“I was very happy with my results,” Wand said. “I had some really good competition, and so I have nothing to hang my head about with my finishes. I also tried to set personal goal times for myself when I go into a competition like this and I exceeded both my goal times. So I was very happy about that.”
As an advocate for the games, he enjoyed seeing local athletes involved in numerous events this year.
“One of the most interesting things about the Senior Olympics is that usually around 50% of the people who participate have never participated in athletic sports previously,” Wand said. “It’s one of those things that when you retire, you’re looking for something to do. I think the key thing is that I hope that I can create interest in this fun event that helps you stay physically fit, mentally sound and socially active.
“That’s the thing about the senior games is that you have something in common with the people that you’re competing against,” he added. “Those competitive juices really flow but, in fact, you’re rooting for them. You’re hoping that you’re going to do well, and everybody is really supporting each other.”
