Advertise on podcast: Huntsman World Senior Games Active Life

Martin Coe has been an athlete since he can remember. At the age of four, his father introduced him to sports in the backyard with a wiffle ball and bat. What began with baseball, football, and basketball evolved into a lifelong passion for competition, learning, and improvement. A standout tennis player for more than 46 years, Martin competed at many levels and was the #1 ranked player in CO for consecutive years. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, he auditioned to play tennis at Metropolitan State University of Denver, where he played #1 singles & doubles for three years, culminating in his 2011 induction into the MSU Athletic Hall of Fame. Nowadays, he has shifted many of his skills to the pickleball court. Martin has also built a remarkable career as a Systems Engineering expert, helping design and manufacture medical technologies including pulse oximeters, ventilators, hemodialysis machines and a robotic gene-sequencing system that made the Human Genome Project possible. Whether solving engineering challenges or studying an opponent's game on the court, Martin believes success comes from the same closed-loop process: observe, understand, learn, apply, adapt, and keep improving. Send us Fan Mail

Elsbeth Padia has been a force in track and field for 19 years. Born in Switzerland when women’s sports were discouraged, she played soccer for 30 years before discovering throwing at 65. Now 88, she trains several days weekly. An 11-year Huntsman World Senior Games competitor, Elsbeth holds six Games’ records across discus, javelin, and shot put. She has won multiple national and international masters gold medals and set the 85–89 American shot put record in 2025. Beyond competing, she coached high school throwers for five years and served ten years as a certified track official. Known for her sportsmanship, she mentors peers, cheers on rivals, assists officials, once spent five straight hours handing out medals, and has even driven athletes from Las Vegas to St. George. Supported by her daughter, son-in-law, and two grandsons, Elsbeth truly embodies the spirit of the Games with positivity, selfless service, and record-setting excellence. Send us Fan Mail

Dr. Suzanne Watson is a retired general dentist who made history in 1974 as the first female recipient in DeSoto High School and Jefferson County, Missouri to be awarded the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Scholar Athlete award for her achievement in multiple sports before continuing her volleyball career at Missouri State University. She later built a successful dental practice, earning recognition as a Top Dentist in St. Louis for nine consecutive years. Since returning to competitive volleyball, Suzanne has become a familiar face at senior tournaments across the country, including the Huntsman World Senior Games, National Senior Games, and Missouri Senior Games. Along the way, she's also navigated an unexpected Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis at age 58, learning how to balance elite-level competition with managing her health through perseverance and modern technology. Whether she's playing volleyball, taking barre and Pilates classes, coaching young athletes, or inspiring others through her example, Suzanne shows that active aging is about adapting, staying engaged, and never giving up on the activities you love. Send us Fan Mail

Meridan Zerner is an award-winning Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and nationally recognized wellness expert with more than 30 years of experience helping people live healthier lives. For the past 25 years, she has worked at a pioneering preventive medicine center in Dallas, Texas, where she combined evidence-based nutrition with creative wellness programming to help patients improve their health and quality of life. Meridan is a Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics and a Certified Health and Wellness Coach, with expertise in weight management, performance nutrition, heart health, and healthy aging. She is passionate about helping people make lasting lifestyle changes through practical, sustainable habits and has a new book coming out soon called “The Thoughtful 30.”  When she’s not working with clients or speaking around the country, she enjoys reading, traveling with her husband and two children, and keeping up with her two energetic rescue dogs. To learn more, visit https://www.meridanzernernutrition.com Send us Fan Mail

Joe Kody is a retired sales professional, lover of all kinds of sports, and a Huntsman World Senior Games athlete who demonstrates that lifelong passions can be rekindled in unexpected ways. As a teenager, Joe enjoyed archery with his father and enjoyed football, baseball, and basketball in his youth. After retirement, he picked up pickleball and quickly became hooked, then rekindled his love for archery, taking on the challenge of barebow competition, where every shot depends on skill, focus, and consistency. Along the way, Joe has overcome arthritis and multiple joint replacements, including both knees and both hips, so he could continue doing the activities he loves. He is a model of resilience, lifelong learning, and why staying active is about much more than winning medals. Send us Fan Mail

Robert Warden is an 82-year-old pickleball coach, community volunteer, lifelong learner, and Huntsman World Senior Games medalist whose remarkable second act began with a wake-up call. After retiring from his second successful career as a nationally recognized on-air chef, this former college baseball player expected to slow down and enjoy life. Instead, at age 75, he found himself at 275 pounds and facing serious health challenges, including degenerative disc disease, heart arrhythmia, prediabetes, sleep apnea, and high blood pressure. His doctor told him he probably wouldn’t live to see 80. Determined to change his future, Bob transformed his lifestyle through exercise, a Mediterranean diet, and a commitment to daily movement. He started with swimming and then moved to pickleball. Today, he coaches pickleball six days a week, volunteers at a local senior center, competes in tournaments, and won a bronze medal in mixed doubles at the Huntsman World Senior Games. He’s also writing a book, studying artificial intelligence, and helping with community wildfire preparedness efforts. Bob's story is a powerful reminder that some of life's most meaningful chapters can begin long after retirement. Send us Fan Mail

For more than five decades, Larry Hodges has been a driving force in table tennis, as a player, coach, author, and advocate for lifelong athletic participation. He began playing at age 16, started coaching before turning 20, and went on to become one of the most influential coaches in U.S. table tennis history, helping develop more than 250 national junior champions and co-founding the Maryland Table Tennis Center, one of the nation’s premier training programs. A member of the U.S. Table Tennis Hall of Fame and recipient of the sport’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Larry has also authored thousands of articles and dozens of books, sharing his passion for the game with generations of athletes. Now in his 60s and still competing at a world-class level, Larry is a powerful example that skill, fitness, and competitive spirit can continue to thrive well into later life.  Visit him at www.TableTennisCoaching.com Send us Fan Mail

Jean Duffy moved over 20 times before high school, including time in Algeria and Spain, and didn't discover her love of sports until adulthood. After years of triathlons, she found her true passion on the soccer field, where the camaraderie of the game kept her coming back. That passion eventually led her to the remarkable Soccer Grannies of South Africa, a group of women ages 40-80 years old who started playing in skirts and who continue to prove that age is no barrier to competition, community, or joy. Jean chronicled their story in her award-winning book “Soccer Grannies: The South African Women Who Inspire the World” and donates all proceeds to support the women and their health and soccer initiatives in South Africa. To purchase the book and show your support, visit https://jeanduffy.com/ Send us Fan Mail

Sue Reynolds knows firsthand that transformation is possible at any age. At 335 pounds, she struggled with everyday tasks like walking a block or tying her shoes. After years of unsuccessful diets, she tried again with a secret goal to complete a triathlon. With a purpose, she lost more than 200 pounds and discovered a love for sport. Just three years after completing her first triathlon at the back of the pack, Sue finished sixth in the world and was the top American at the World Triathlon Championship. Curious about elite performance, Sue quit her job and trained with Olympic-level coaches as if she were on an Olympic pathway. In her 70s while embracing an Olympian’s habits and mindset, she won world championships in 2022 and 2023, but later developed severe overtraining syndrome, forcing her to rethink both her training and priorities. Beyond sport, Sue was National High School Counselor of the Year and founded Inspire Success, a non-profit that helps community leadership teams engage in the process of high performance.  She is the author of The Athlete Inside and Across the Line, with 100% of author proceeds supporting the USA Triathlon Foundation.  Send us Fan Mail

Tiffany Gust, MS, CEP, NBC-HWC, is an Exercise Physiologist with Intermountain Sports Performance, where she developed the High-Performance Aging Program to help adults improve fitness, function, and longevity. She is the owner of TG Triathlon and Fitness Coaching, an adjunct professor at Utah Tech University, and a fitness author and contributor to Southern Utah Health & Wellness Magazine and other health and fitness publications. Tiffany holds a master’s degree in applied Exercise Science and Sports Nutrition and is a Certified Exercise Physiologist, National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach, USA Triathlon Coach, and U.S. Masters Swimming Coach. A lifelong endurance athlete, Tiffany has completed more than 175 triathlons, including 24 Ironman races, and has qualified for World Championship competition as an age-group athlete. Drawing from both professional expertise and personal experience overcoming strokes and heart surgery, she is passionate about empowering adults to stay active, healthy, and performing at their best throughout life. Tiffany lives in Southern Utah with her husband and three children, and two grandchildren. Send us Fan Mail

Krista Tate recently moved to St. George from Utah Valley and is excited to begin a new chapter. A wife, mother of three, and grandmother of four, she enjoyed being active when she was young, though organized sports were never part of her life growing up. In her thirties, shortly after the birth of her youngest child, she was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. Years of fatigue, inflammation, and medication made everyday activities challenging, and she wondered if those limitations would define the rest of her life. While these symptoms diminished over time, she still wasn’t very active for over a decade. Everything changed when a friend invited her to try high-intensity circuit training at her gym at age 48. As her strength and confidence grew, so did her belief that she could accomplish difficult things. Since then, she has completed multiple Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim hikes, hiked Half Dome despite a fear of heights, learned to ski at age 52, and even gone skydiving twice. Krista’s story is a powerful reminder that it’s never too late to rediscover your potential and embrace new adventures. Send us Fan Mail

Hannah Rothlin lives in St. George, UT with over 30 years of experience guiding individuals and athletic teams on the benefits of mindful meditation to enhance performance, focus, resiliency, and enjoyment of their sport. She has been an athlete most of her life playing tennis and volleyball in college, as a competitive whitewater canoeist, and an international and iron distance triathlete. Hannah’s professional career has included being a personal fitness trainer, corporate wellness consultant, strength and conditioning coach for college athletes, exercise specialist at Intermountain Healthcare, is currently Wellness Director at Ovation Senior Living community in Washington, UT, and she has a private practice called Mindfulness Matters where she works with senior athletes and teams to perform their best. Hannah has graduate degrees in Exercise Science and Consciousness Studies giving her a deep understanding of the mind-body connection and the importance of mental preparation for successful and enjoyable sports performance. Send us Fan Mail

Leona Shurtliff is a lifelong athlete, devoted mother of twelve, and one of the Huntsman World Senior Games’ most enduring ambassadors. Now 84 years old, she has competed in volleyball, track and field, and softball for nearly three decades, building a legacy that spans generations. Leona and her father, Walter Brooks, made Games history as the first known father-daughter track and field duo to compete together, and some of her favorite memories include sharing the medal podium with her father and brother. Despite growing up when organized sports opportunities for girls were limited, Leona’s love of competition endured and inspired all twelve of her children to participate in athletics. Inducted into the Huntsman World Senior Games Hall of Fame last year, Leona remains a passionate advocate for active aging. Just a year and a half after a hip replacement which she calls “the best thing I ever did,” she continues to stay active, enjoyed her first cruise earlier this year with family, and is eagerly looking forward to competing at this year’s Huntsman World Senior Games. Send us Fan Mail

At 83 years old, Kay Grundhaus stays busier than many people half her age. A longtime hair stylist, realtor, world traveler, and community volunteer, she is also the proud mother of four children, grandmother of ten, and great-grandmother of fourteen. Following a period of reduced activity during the COVID years, Kay joined a local walking group to get active again. A chance invitation to a free pickleball lesson changed everything. One lesson was all it took for her to fall in love with the sport, opening the door to new friendships, competitions, and travel opportunities. Now entering her third year of pickleball, she returns to the Huntsman World Senior Games with a new partner and plans to compete in four events. Beyond pickleball, Kay enjoys kayaking, hiking, e-bike riding, and 5K races. A 37-year member of Kiwanis, she hopes to inspire other women in their 80s to stay active, adventurous, and engaged. Send us Fan Mail

Pat McEwen grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania and has carried his work ethic established at an early age throughout his life. In high school he competed in four sports: football, wrestling, men’s gymnastics, and track and field. He earned a wrestling scholarship to Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania and set multiple pole vault records during the early days of the sport’s transition from rigid poles to the bent-pole era. Pat became a marathon runner with a personal best of 2:36, completed more than 100 Nordic ski races to earn Centurion status, raced bicycles in events including LOTOJA, has 42 years of expert experience in high wind windsurfing explored backcountry skiing, mountaineering, and climbing, and tackled some of the West’s most challenging Class V whitewater runs. Professionally, he spent 45 years as a respiratory therapist, including work in trauma ICU, Life Flight, and hyperbaric medicine. If that is not enough, Pat is also a gifted musician, playing multiple instruments and singing in a band called River House Band; the band has performed in over 60 shows a year for the past 3 years. To listen to some of his band's music, visit https://www.reverbnation.com/riverhouse Send us Fan Mail