Director Brittany Hook said the National Veterans Golden Age Games are one of six national rehabilitation programs offered through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The games were founded in 1985 to offer competitive sporting events to veterans and improve the quality of life of veterans ages 55 and older.
Hook said a network of rehabilitation therapists who work at local Veterans Affairs medical centers put together teams of athletes and train year-round. The therapists help athletes identify and set goals to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle. The teams then come together at the Golden Age Games to showcase their progress and try to win gold.
This year Hook said over 800 veteran athletes are competing in 19 medaled sports, including cornhole, pickleball and three-on-three basketball. Hook said there are also exhibition events, including bobsledding at the Utah Olympic Park, to encourage veterans to try something new.
“We decided to include bobsledding as an exhibition event because it's not a sport that's typically accessible in many communities,” she said. “This offers a unique opportunity for us to introduce veterans to something that they may have never experienced before or have only had limited access to.”
Over 100 veterans tried the bobsled Tuesday, including Utah native JD Eskelson. Eskelson served in the military for 40 years and this was his first time at the Golden Age Games.
He said the bobsled exhibition was the “icing on the cake” of the Games, especially the second and third turn on the track.
“We're laughing, all of sudden you hit those two turns, and that's when you really hit the three and a half, four Gs. It literally took my breath away. My stomach went up to my throat,” Eskelson said. “This is a great sport because I love anything that does that to you, like jumping out of planes; I'm a paratrooper.”
Eskelson’s bobsled sped down the track at a speed of roughly 75 mph. Top top bottom, the trip only took a few minutes.
This was Air Force veteran Felicia Bryson’s first year competing in the Golden Age Games as well. She discovered the games through her participation in Wounded Warrior events and is the only competing athlete from Omaha, Nebraska.
Bryson competed in the pickleball, free-throw basketball and 5k cycling events. She said the bobsled exhibition was one of the best experiences at the games.
“It was thrilling,” Bryson said. “I was nervous at first because I was trying to compare it to a roller coaster ride and [it’s] similar, but more turns.”
The closing ceremony for the games is Thursday at the Gallivan Center in downtown Salt Lake City.
