74-year-old Badminton Champ Brings Home Gold, Silver, Bronze

This summer, James Ho added three new medals to his growing—and nearly overflowing—collection. After participating in the July 2013 National Senior Games in Cleveland, Ohio, Ho brought home gold, silver and bronze medals—one each for his accomplishments in badminton, a game the 74-year-old Loma Linda resident has been playing for over six decades. He received the medals after competing in the age 70 to 74 age bracket; his bronze was in men’s singles, the silver in mixed doubles and the gold in men’s doubles. Ho shared that since 1999, he has been traveling the country and participating in the National Senior Games, which have been played every other year since 1985 in the effort to “promote healthy lifestyles for adults through education, fitness and sport,” according to the National Senior Games Association’s official website. In the off season, Ho plays badminton three times a week at the Loma Linda University Drayson Center, to keep in shape, he says. He’s one of the oldest out of the 40 or so players. “There’s only one guy who plays at the Drayson Center who is older than me, and he is 77,” Ho said. As a child, Ho, who is a native of Singapore, picked up the sport at age six. He was the first in his family to do so, and he shared that he spread his passion for the sport to his four younger brothers and younger sister. “I just love the sport. It’s a clean sport and there’s no contact,” he said. “It really exercises the whole body: your shoulders, your arms, your knees, your legs, and it also helps with balance,” he said. Traveling beside him to every National Senior Games is his wife, Christine, who Ho said was “my biggest cheerleader.” “Every year there are Games, I enjoy going,” Christine said. “He loves the sport so much, and I will always support him. I’m so proud that he can still run and play at his age.” Ho estimated there were about 15,000 total contestants competing in the various sports this year: archery, badminton, basketball, bocce, bowling, cycling, disc golf, golf, horseshoes, pickleball, race walking, racquetball, road racing, shuffleboard, softball, swimming, table tennis, tennis, track & field, the triathlon and volleyball. In July 2015, Ho plans to travel to Minnesota to compete in the 2015 Games.