End of the Bench: Arkadelphia represented in National Senior Games

By CHRIS BABB | Special to arkadelphian.com

Thousands of athletes ages 50-100+ have descended upon Des Moines, Iowa, this week to compete in more than 25 sports in the 2025 National Senior Games, conducted by the National Senior Games Association (NSGA).

Three of those over 12,000 athletes who made the trip to Iowa from Arkadelphia.

Jenny Coon, Mary Davis and Jan Parsons are representing Arkadelphia and Arkansas in this week’s competition. Coon is playing for Team AROK in the 55+ 3 vs. 3 women’s basketball division. Parsons and Davis are competing as a doubles team in the 3.5 women’s pickleball doubles division for ages 60-64.

Whereas the basketball competition started over the weekend, the opening ceremonies for the games were held Monday night and the three Arkadelphians marched with other athletes from the state of Arkansas in the celebration of athletes.

To navigate the slideshow gallery below, simply click the arrow on either side of the image. Photos courtesy of Jenny Coon.

Parsons said even just the parade and celebration of athletes was full of excitement and commented on the energy and that the camaraderie of all the participants was an exciting thing to be a part of.

The NSGA member organizations represent nearly every state and Canada and host sanctioned competitions in their areas, according to the NSGA website. The National Senior Games are held every two years and athletes must qualify at a State Senior Games in the year before the National games to be able to participate.

The first Senior Games event, more commonly referred to as the “Senior Olympics” was held in 1969, but was not a national event. After spreading to other states the first National Senior Games were held in 1987.

The National Senior Game YouTube channel is posting daily recaps of the week’s competition on its YouTube channel.

Parsons and Smith will begin competition Wednesday as two of what the tournament website lists as 1,988 total pickleball players. The division in which Parsons and Smith are participating can be found here when the tournament begins on Wednesday. Coon and her AROK team began play over the weekend and ended the tournament finishing in sixth place in the Silver bracket.

Coon said the competition against players who had college and professional basketball experience was one she’ll never forget. One of the players Coon guarded was Laurie Byrd, who played professionally for 15 years in Europe and in the United States. Byrd was on the training camp roster for the Detroit Shock of the WNBA in 1999 and 2000.

“I can’t explain how cool it is to play – and be able to compete with – those types of players,” said Coon. It was such a great experience. We just met so many neat people who just love the game of basketball.”

Coon’s team is aptly named Team AROK because all of the players are from either Arkansas or Oklahoma.

The women’s basketball tournament features 28 teams in the 60s age group, three in the 75 year-old age group and seven teams in the 80-plus age group.

All three of the Arkadelphia representatives seem to have a sense of excitement around all of the athletes and Davis commented on the sheer numbers of athletes participating in the games.

“I am amazed at the over 12,000 participants age 50 plus that still love the competition and the game, “Davis said.

The experience has also served as a time of learning for some athletes who are looking forward to the next opportunity, including Coon.

“After this first time, I know how to be even more prepared for two years from now in Tulsa,” Coon said both reflecting on the experience and thinking ahead to the next games.