Cherokee County's Golden Olympians

By Ellen Samsell Salas

 

Harry Lowe

Waleska
Retired Electrical Engineer
Discus: Bronze
Shot Put: Bronze

 

Harry Lowe, 74, began competing in track events in high school. Experienced with 18 trips to the games, he conditions and practices two to three times a week and competes several times a year. Hard work pays off, and Lowe made it to nationals in 2007 and 2017.

Lowe enjoys field events because they enable him to compete against himself and then gauge his improvement against the skills of other athletes. He also loves the spirit of the games.

“I like to catch up and see the other athletes,” he said. “I have friends at the games, and it’s just good to see them again. And I like to help other athletes and do a little coaching if I can.”

 

Alan King

Canton
Retired Finance Accounting
Pickleball
     Singles: Gold
     Doubles: Gold
     Mixed Doubles: Gold

 

A lifelong tennis player who competed in high school, ALTA, and USTA, Alan King says he picked up a pickleball paddle five years ago and was hooked.

Now, King plays about five days a week, “Though my wife would say seven,” he joked. He takes his paddle wherever he goes. He has played in 15 states and also in Ireland and Scotland. He played at nationals in 2018.

With a “what the heck, we’ll give it a try” attitude, King and his mixed doubles partner also decided to compete in table tennis and cornhole.

“We’re at a fun stage in life. We can do anything we want,” he said.

Due to being the 2019 champion in each of these events, King and his teammates were automatically grandfathered in as the gold medal winners this year when all three of their events were cancelled in Warner Robins due to the pandemic.

 

Naomi Shedd

Acworth
Retired Homeschool Mom
Pickleball
     Singles: Gold
     Doubles: Silver
Mixed Doubles: Bronze
50-Meter Dash: Gold
100-Meter Dash: Bronze

 

A newcomer to the game, Naomi Shedd put down her tennis racket and bought her first pickleball racket only a year ago. Already a seasoned competitor, she has traveled from Pennsylvania to South Carolina to Florida and to Alabama to play.

Floundering a bit after homeschooling her children, she found her stride again when she discovered pickleball. With a “fierce competitive spirit,” Shedd quickly picked up the game. Now, she enjoys singles “because it depends solely on me,” she said, but she also enjoys being part of a team while playing doubles and mixed doubles.

When asked about the process of learning to play pickleball, Shedd said, “I jumped right in. It’s easy to learn, and it’s very social. There’s a mix of people. It’s addictive, and I landed on it like a meteorite.”

To further solidify how athletically well rounded she is, Shedd also competed in the 50- and 100-meter dash races this year.

 

Bob Buckham

Woodstock
Retired Accountant
50-Meter Dash: Gold
100-Meter Dash: Gold

 

A seasoned competitor in the Golden Olympics, Bob Buckham, 87, recalled that, after running in nationals in 2018, he promised his wife that would be his last competition. But in his characteristic positive spirit he said, “I got the urge to try again. I’m not in the kind of shape I need to be, but that’s OK.”

Buckham sees the games as an opportunity to support the volunteers who make them happen and to observe other athletes.

“The athletes are magnificent,” he said. “I enjoy watching their abilities. Some of their times are great.”

Many would consider Buckham’s times spectacular. With a time of 10.16 in the 50-meter dash and 20.44 in the 100-meter dash, he placed first in his age group in 2018, using his crouched start to get ahead early and stay ahead.

A competitor in high school and college, Buckham gets in shape by stretching and doing conditioning exercises. In the month prior to a meet, he gets up before dawn to run sprints. Wearing his signature Grove City College T-shirt, he enjoys himself whatever the outcome of his races.

“I run for fun. If I win, fine, but if I’m second, well, whatever,” said Buckham.