800 Senior Olympians now in town for Games

The Mississippi Senior Olympics, boasting nearly 800 competitors, are off and running – and walking and rolling and throwing and more.

Athletes age 50 and older from 19 states began competing this morning in nearly two dozen events at various locations along the Mississippi Gulf Coast from April 4 through May 26.

Games include a 5K run/walk, a 10K run/walk, archery, badminton, basketball, bocce ball, bowling, cycling, darts, disc golf, golf, horseshoes, pickleball, racquetball, shuffleboard,  swimming, table tennis, tennis, track and field, triathlon and volleyball. 

Pickleball, taking place on May 5 at the Biloxi High School, has the most participants with 166 registered and shuffleboard, taking place on May 8 at the Dr. Frank G. Gruich Sr. Community Center has the oldest player, John Bartle age 95.

“This year is a qualifying year for the National Senior Games in Albuquerque in 2019,” said Jamie Lee, state director and chair of the Mississippi Senior Olympics.  “We are excited for our participants and are excited to have these games on the coast for the fourth year in a row.”

In 2015, the games moved from Jackson because of the Coast’s concentration of athletes.

The Mississippi Senior Olympics operates under the guidelines set by the National Senior Games Association, which sees more than 10,000 seniors competing in the semi-annual National Senior Games.

Participants are from Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Oregon, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, Michigan, Illinois, Tennessee, Virginia, Iowa, North Carolina, Missouri, Maryland, South Carolina, Maine, and Ohio.
See the schedule of events
See more about the Mississippi Senior Olympics

 

Biloxi beachgoers: MSU needs your help

Researchers at Mississippi State, as part of the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, are asking beachgoers to help them by evaluating ocean visits by completing a survey tailored to help ensure that planned outings are truly “a day at the beach.”

The survey, conducted by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System, is anonymous and focuses on visitors’ past and planned visits to beaches in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida. The information collected from the 10-12 minute survey includes factors such as weather, crowds, and water quality and will help to develop data and data products that appeal to beachgoers. 

“This Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System provides a wide array of science-based data and related products,” said MSU Associate Professor of Agricultural Economics Dan Petrolia.  “This study focuses on an expanded Gulf of Mexico beach conditions monitoring system and the value of this expansion to those individuals who frequent beaches along the Gulf Coast.”

The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium was created as a federal/state partnership to enhance the sustainable use and conservation of ocean and coastal resources to benefit the economy and environment in Mississippi and Alabama.
Take the survey

 

News and notes

Community market:  Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich was on hand Tuesday morning to usher in the season for the Charles R. Hegwood Biloxi Community Market.  The kickoff festival featured giveaways from Main Street Biloxi, live entertainment and a host of vendors. To see images and learn more about the market, click here.

Traffic update: The Public Works Department regularly updates the status of road construction throughout the city. On the Traffic Update page, you’ll also find a maps of road closures, traffic counts and MDOT traffic cameras, and a link to the infrastructure status video. To visit the Traffic Update page, click here.

Traffic advisories and more: B-Alert will be sending a reminder this morning about the tornado siren testing that takes place at noon. To receive B-alert notices text your ZIP code to 888777. To receive Spring Break traffic advisories, text SPBK to 888777.