With the 2016 Summer Olympics currently in progress in Rio de Janeiro (August 5-21, 2016), get into the spirit at your retirement community with some Olympic party games for seniors. You won’t need to run 400-meter dashes or train to beat Michael Phelps in the pool. Simply use the ideas below to create a fun-filled day (or week) with games and friendly competition, ending with a closing ceremony and the presentation of medals.
Olympic Party Games for Seniors
Opening Ceremony
Begin your event with an opening ceremony. This could be an elaborate party with decorations and entertainment or a simple breakfast buffet. If your Olympic party games for seniors will be quite competitive, consider dividing your participants into teams at the Opening Ceremony, perhaps assigning each group a country (to be fair, don’t give any group the USA). To end the event and herald the start of the competition, light a ceremonial torch.
Quoits
Quoits has challenged the young and old alike since its inception in the British Isles in the 15th century. In its most simple version, contestants throw rings at a vertical post some distance away. Usually, the winner is the person who gets the most rings onto the post. There are many ways to vary the game, however, including the following:
- Using other items as posts
- Increasing the distance between the participants and posts
- Changing the size of the rings
- Adding more vertical posts
Table Tennis
Anyone for a little table tennis? Hold the “__________ Senior Open,” placing the name of your retirement community in the blank and structuring the competition like a Grand Slam tennis tournament. For fun, you could also ask everyone to dress in white as if you were at Wimbledon.
Basketball Games
Purchase small indoor hoops for “room basketball.” Organize the participants into pairs to play each other in short games. Instead of regular basketball, play a shooting game like HORSE, in which players attempt to make baskets from certain spots and in particular ways. Each time a player misses a basket, they acquire a letter from the word horse. When a player has all the letters, they are eliminated from the game, and the competition continues until one player (the winner) remains. You could also try Around the World or Knockout.
Bocce
To get everybody out into the sunshine, hold a bocce competition. Although its modern form was developed in Italy, bocce has been around since the Roman Empire. The game begins when the jack (a small ball) is tossed to the end of the court, about 15 feet away from the players. Then, players toss metal (or plastic) balls using an underarm action, attempting to gain a favorable position near the jack. Players can also strategically knock their competitors’ balls away from the jack.
Closing Ceremony
To end your Olympic party games for seniors with flair, hold a Closing Ceremony party. The event could include delicious food, exciting entertainment, arts and crafts, more games, or perhaps even a fun dress code. Begin with your awards ceremony, presenting the gold, silver, and bronze medals won over the last several hours (or days). You could also present playful awards for superlatives, such as “best dressed,” “most enthusiastic,” “best team player,” or “most encouraging fan.”
Good luck, and may the best athlete win!
If you’re interested in assisted living in Collierville, Tennessee, be sure to check out Hearthside Senior Living of Collierville. We have spacious apartments and convenient services and amenities, like exercise classes, a beautiful dining room, and group activities. If you’re interested in learning more about the community or scheduling a tour, please give us a call at 901-651-2503 or click here. We look forward to hearing from you!