Sports days are loved by people of all ages.
These popular sports days are also held at day service centers for seniors.
In this article, we’ll introduce recommended events for sports days held at such day service centers.
The events, such as bread-biting races and ball toss games, are classic activities adapted for older adults.
They’re designed to be safe and enjoyable.
There are also unique events like stick soccer, and many can be enjoyed while seated.
We’ve gathered a variety of unique activities tailored for seniors.
Let’s move our bodies and enjoy a healthy, fun time!
- [For Seniors] A Fun Sports Day! Recreational Activities You Can Do Safely
- Recommended Indoor Exercises for Seniors
- [Elderly Care Facilities] Let’s Have Fun Together! Exciting Sports Day Events
- [For Seniors] Fun Recreational Activities Without Equipment
- [For Seniors] Exciting Team-Based Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- For Seniors: Fun Entertainment That Excites at Nursing Homes
- Recommended fun performances that will appeal to elderly people
- [For Seniors] Simple Tabletop Games: Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Easy and fun seated activities you can do in your room
- For seniors: Simple and exciting! Ideas for staff performances
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Day Service: A Collection of Fun Event Ideas
- [For Seniors] Highlights of Fun Events at Day-Service Centers
[For Seniors] Recommended Events (1–10) for a Sports Day at a Day Service
Object-passing relay
Let’s try a passing relay where you pass an item from the person next to you to the next, and so on! Have each team sit in a straight horizontal line.
At the starting signal, an item will be placed on the fan you’re holding.
Without using your hands, smoothly pass it onto the fan of the person next to you and aim for the goal.
Once one item reaches the goal, continue with the next item.
The difficulty changes depending on the size and instability of the item.
Try passing various objects and be careful not to drop them.
It’s a game that boosts concentration and teamwork!
obstacle course
We adapted the popular sports day event, the obstacle race, for seniors.
Instead of the seniors competing themselves, daruma dolls made from cardboard race each other! Attach casters to the cardboard daruma so they glide easily on the floor, and add a string so seniors can control them with ease.
For obstacles that block the daruma’s path, slightly raised pieces of cardboard work well.
Avoid making the steps too high, or the daruma won’t be able to get over them.
Balancing the daruma is tricky, which also makes this great for helping prevent cognitive decline in seniors!
Newspaper ball rolling relay
This is a recreation activity where you compete to see how fast you can roll a ball placed on a sheet of newspaper.
It’s suitable for small to large groups, so it’s also recommended for situations where you want to promote interaction among older adults.
Arrange chairs facing each other in alternating rows, and have two people hold the ends of a sheet of newspaper.
Roll the ball you’re given onto the next person’s newspaper, and if it makes it into the basket, that’s a goal.
You can enjoy variety by rolling different types of balls, such as a regular ball, beanbags, or a beach ball.
Give this event a try to experience the fun and sense of unity that comes from doing an activity together.
Slipper Toss
Let’s try adopting “Slipper Toss” as a sport—a game where all you do is kick off the slippers you’re wearing with a spirited flick, and yet it sparks laughter, cheers, and excitement! Sit in a chair and just fling the slippers on your left and right feet.
It’s a fun event because sometimes they don’t go as far as you expect, or they fly off in completely unexpected directions.
After each toss, remain seated and measure the distance from where your feet were together to where the slipper landed.
You might think your dominant foot can send it farther—but maybe not…?
bread-eating contest
As a competition that livens up sports festivals, the bread-eating race is often included.
Participants walk to where the bread is hung and try to bite and eat it using only their mouths.
To make it easier for older adults, it’s best to prepare smaller or softer breads.
After an older participant catches a piece of bread, staff should be ready to support them—such as by holding onto the bread for them or offering a helping hand.
This event not only gets people moving but also lets them enjoy eating the bread they’ve won.
Consider holding this exciting race at your day-service sports festival to really heat up the competition.
rod soccer
How about introducing “stick soccer” as a sports day event, where you’re not allowed to use your feet even though it’s soccer? Teams sit in a single row on each side and use sticks to control the ball and score goals—soccer played with sticks.
Just like real soccer, there’s a proper goalkeeper in front of each goal, but they also make saves using a stick.
You can include a halftime break and switch the direction of the goals for the second half.
It’s an exciting soccer game you can play while seated.
Target shooting
A target-throwing game where you toss beanbags at targets placed a short distance away.
It’s a simple activity, but the difficulty changes with the distance and size of the targets, making it easy for anyone to enjoy.
Write point values on each target and compete for the highest total score based on hits.
Make smaller or farther targets worth more points.
You can also just compete on how many targets you can hit or knock down.
Turning it into a team competition makes it even more exciting and gives it a sports day feel.