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Tuesday, November 26, 2002

By Gary Rotstein, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey is 69 now, but he'll have to compete in the age 70-74 category if he wants to run track as he did in college by the time Pittsburgh hosts the Senior Olympics.

It will be June 2005 when about 12,000 athletes who are age 50 and older gather in one of the nation's oldest cities -- at least age-wise -- for the event known formally as the Summer National Senior Games.

Representatives of the National Senior Games Association will join local government leaders and officials from UPMC Health System and the University of Pittsburgh today to announce Pittsburgh as the 2005 site, a decision first made tentatively on Oct. 12.

Roddey, who attended Texas Christian University on an athletic scholarship, stays fit but hasn't sprinted in decades. He hasn't ruled out training for an attempt to join the national competition in 2 1/2 years, but he acknowledges his more important involvement will probably be on the fund-raising end.

"I've made a commitment to help raise the money," he said of about $2.5 million that might be needed in cash and in-kind donation of services to put on the event.

A local group that worked informally on the Senior Olympics bid from the outset, headed by doctors in UPMC's sports medicine program, has nailed down details since then with association officials and submitted the $30,000 necessary to prove how serious the local interest is.

The association, based in Baton Rouge, La., organizes the national summer games every two years, with individuals qualifying in 18 individual and team events at state tournaments held the year before. The next Senior Olympics will be held May 26-June 9 in Hampton Roads, Va.

Pittsburgh was among 19 cities that submitted bids to host the games in either 2005 or 2007. Association officials toured facilities of the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, city and county parks and other potential venues in July, before visiting Louisville, Ky., and Des Moines, Iowa, the other two cities in the final cutdown.

"You could tell they were very impressed -- they sort of gave us a wink like they were going to choose us," said Roddey, who made a pitch to the senior games officials in a personal meeting, as did Mayor Tom Murphy.

"I just think raising the money is the key issue now, because all of the facilities are pretty well in place," Roddey said.

He said the county will offer sites, manpower and security for the events, but he doesn't know if it or the city will be able to provide direct funding. Roddey said he hopes the state will be able to offer a grant, with corporations, foundations and individuals donating the rest.