Bball takes men to Worlds
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Updated: November 19, 2009 5:07 PM
Jessica Murdy
The Observer
Len Davidiuk and Brad Rendall are two locals who haven't let getting a little older stop them from following their athletic dreams.
And they've just been rewarded for their determination with bronze medals from the World Masters.
The two men have just recently returned from Sydney, Australia, where they joined 28,000 other athletes in competition.
They were there to play basketball, but the games includes almost every sport imaginable — as varied as baseball, canoeing, archery, diving, golf, shooting, tennis and weightlifting,
Davidiuk and Rendall, along with their men's basketball team, decided to take a run at the World Masters a while back. They play in in the Abbotsford Men's League weekly, along with Mike Farrer, Dean Bauck, Bill Leathem, Stan Petersen, Larry Simister, Mike Dendys, and Ed Jones.
For Rendall, basketball has been a lifelong sport. Now 52, he says playing is a great way to stay active.
"As soon as you stop, you're done," he says. "You've got to keep active."
The team certainly stayed active in Sydney. They played eight games in nine days, starting with a round robin schedule and then heading into the playoffs, 4 and 0.
There were 15 teams to battle in their division, and the competition was good, Rendall says.
"Everybody was scrapping," he says.
But in the end, they lost by 10 points to a Russian team.
Rendall says the team has the taste for the World's now, and are already planning a trip to compete in four years time, in Turin.
The World Masters were held in Edmonton four years ago, and the B.C. Masters are held annually.
It's been a busy year for Rendall himself. The Agassiz Community Policing Officer also just competed in the recent Police and Fire Games in Vancouver.
