Haines seniors weren’t showing their age at the Alaska International Senior Games earlier this month.

Marian Carlson, her husband John Carlson and Tomi Scovill all medaled in the event, held Aug. 7 – 16 in Fairbanks.

More than 330 athletes from 10 states as well as Canada and the Ukraine competed in this year’s senior games.

Marian Carlson won gold medals in three sprint swimming events in the 70-74 age group, the 50-meter freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke.

“I didn’t dare swim anything longer because I probably would’ve died,” she said.

With the pool closed, Carlson was unable to train for the event. But in each of her swimming events, she beat the men in the same age group.

Carlson downplayed the achievement. “Anybody can do it,” she said. “It’s just muscle memory.”

Carlson and her husband both placed third in their age group’s horseshoe event. John Carlson also placed fourth in men’s singles bocce, though he said that the event was more for fun than for the competition.

“It was just fun to go up there,” said John Carlson. “It’s a nice road trip to Fairbanks in the middle of the summer.”

After neck surgery in April, Scovill said, she hadn’t been able to train much before the games. But despite that, she ended up winning the women’s horseshoe event in the 64-69 age group. She also placed third in both the power walk and women’s singles bocce.

“I did pretty good for not being able to practice any of the events,” Scovill said.

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