Jim Kenney

Age and cancer don’t stop this athlete

Friday, Aug. 24, 2007

By James A. McCray III, Staff Writer

Reprint of article from www.somdnews.com

What will you be doing when you are 66 years old? Maybe talking retirement? Maybe celebrating birthdays with grandchildren? Maybe even moving to Florida to enjoy the rest of your life?

Here’s an idea. When you hit the age of 66, try traveling the country to participate in track and field events after you have been diagnosed with cancer and survived it. Think it can’t be done? Well meet Jim Kenney.

Kenney, a 66-year-old resident of White Plains, travels the country participating in track and field master competitions for seniors.

Masters reservations are designated for senior track and field athletes over the age of 40.

In July, Kenney traveled to Canada to participate in the Canadian Masters Track and Field Championships.

‘‘We enjoy it mainly because we get to travel and meet new people,” said Diane Kenney, his wife of 44 years. ‘‘I also get to video tape him so he can use the tapes for training purposes. I can travel with him and I can be his number one fan.”

While in Canada Kenney won gold medals in three events — the shot put, the high jump and in his favorite event the javelin throw.

‘‘He has always had a good arm and could throw pretty well,” Diane Kenney said.

More recently, on Aug. 2, Kenney participated in the United States National Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Maine.

For the second straight competition, Kenney won a gold medal in the javelin, throwing 141 feet, 7 inches, a personal best for the senior athlete.

In the same competition, Kenney won the bronze medal in the high jump and placed fourth in the shot put.

On competing, Kenney said, ‘‘This is a great way to help keep me young and my body fit.”

Through eight years of competing in masters events, Kenney had to take a six-month hiatus two years ago after deciding to have a radical prostatectomy. The procedure was done to remove the prostate gland after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

‘‘Many men are reluctant to talk about prostate cancer,” Diane Kenney said. ‘‘Physical exercise and conditioning are an important aspect of his lifestyle following his surgery. Competing allows him to channel his energy into something positive and it [being a cancer survivor] motivates him to try even harder.”

However, even after surviving cancer and even after the gold medals, Kenney has even more accomplishments.

He enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1960. He sailed on Coast Guard missions to Antarctica and in Vietnam.

The last five years of Kenney’s Coast Guard duty were spent in Washington, D.C., in efforts to create intelligence aimed at putting a cease to maritime drug trafficking.

Diane Kenney is not shy about helping others either. She recently retired from the Charles County Health Department as a registered nurse.

Currently, Jim Kenney is ranked third in the United States in the javelin throw and ranked seventh overall in the world.

‘‘He is always checking the stats,” Diane Kenney said, ‘‘to see where he is on the leader boards. He enjoys competing with competitors his age and the desire to win is what keeps him going.”

The Kenneys, outside of Jim’s competitions, are now officially retired. They have four kids and five grandchildren to keep them plenty busy.

For seniors wanting to participate in masters competitions, more information can be found at www.nationalmasternews.com or visit the national track and field Web site, www.usatf.org.

To locate more information for senior males concerning prostate cancer, visit

www.prostatecancerfoundation.org.

Copyright © 2008 NQHS58. All rights reserved.

Revised: 04/12/08.

Questions or comments on the website? E-mail: admin@mazton.com