2019 Northern Virginia Senior Olympic Registration Now Open, Games to be Held Sept. 14-28

Are You 50 or Over?

Alexandria area home to four NVSO venues

ALEXANDRIA, VA – Registration for the 2019 Northern Virginia Senior Olympics, one of the region’s largest annual events for seniors, has begun at www.nvso.us. The 2019 games will take place Sept. 14 thru Sept. 28 .

The NVSO was first held in 1982 with a little over 80 competitors. In 2018, more than 850 Northern Virginians took part in the games that exercise the mind as well as the body.

The 2019 NVSO will include more than 60 events. To qualify, competitors must be at least 50 years old by December 31, 2019, and reside in one of the NVSO’s sponsoring jurisdictions.

New this year is a flat registration fee of $15 that allows participants to compete in as many events as they choose with the exception of bowling, cycling, golf and orienteering, which do have additional charges. There will be no onsite or day-of event registration for any NVSO event.

The NVSO, a volunteer- driven nonprofit, is a joint project of the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax and Falls Church and the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, and Prince William.

Golf, Bowling, Dominoes, Cribbage, Billiards, Sudoku and More

The games will be hosted at more than 25 venues, including several in the Alexandria area. The NVSO’s ten pin bowling event will occur at Bowl America Shirley. The dominoes and Mexican train table games will take place at Goodwin House Bailey’s Crossroads. Cribbage, line-dancing, pool (8 ball and 9 ball) will be played at The Lincolnia Senior Center near Landmark. The NVSO bunco tournament is being hosted at the Hollin Hall Senior Center.

In addition to offering traditional Olympic-style events such as running, walking, discus and swimming, the NVSO also has games that exercise the mind, including bridge, Sudoku and one of this year’s new competitions, jigsaw puzzle, according to Rob Paine, the NVSO’s spokesman.

“No matter what your level of physical activity is, there will be a game for you,” Paine said.

“Last year, we even had a 101-year-old woman win a gold medal in duplicate bridge.”

A new competition being added this year for those more active seniors is line dancing.

NVSO partner RSVP-Northern Virginia, the region’s largest volunteer group for those 55 or better, recruits more than 100 volunteers to support the games each year.

Want to Volunteer or Be a Sponsor?

Those interested in volunteering should contact RSVP at 703-403-5360 or email [email protected]. Volunteers can register online beginning July 8 at www.rsvpnova.org.

In addition to the support of these local jurisdictions, the NVSO is also made possible thanks to the patronage of local businesses and media outlets including The Zebra, which for the second year is an NVSO gold patron. To become an NVSO patron please email [email protected] for more information.

Registration Info and Deadlines

The deadline for NVSO competitor registration at www.nvso.us is Aug. 31. Paper registrations, available at most area recreation and senior centers, must be post-marked no later than Aug. 24. For more information on the games, please visit the NVSO’s website at www.nvso.us.