State Games: Omahan back on track

Last year at this time, Richard Chess was gearing up to compete at the Cornhusker State Games when a heart attack, just four days before the competition, stopped him in his tracks.

“I was hoping it was not that big of a deal and that I would still be able to get there on Saturday,” he said. “But it turned out I couldn’t do that.”

This year, the 56-year-old Omahan will get a second chance to fulfill his goal of participating in the State Games, which run from July 17 to 26 in Lincoln and surrounding areas.

After six months of recovery, Chess got the green light from his doctor to start training. And he’s not taking it easy on himself. He signed up for the 100-meter dash, the 1,500-meter race walk, the shot put and the discus.

Chess, 56, who ran track at Omaha South High School and played competitive rugby before he was married, used his training for the State Games to get back into shape.

“I didn’t have much choice,” he said, “because you have to exercise to prevent recurrence.”

Regular exercise has been one way Chess has modified his life since the heart attack. He has also changed his diet, eating more fruits and vegetables and cutting back on fatty foods.

He worked his way up to sprinting about a month ago and borrowed a discus and a shot put from his daughters’ former school to practice.

Chess is a computer programmer by profession but now does clerical work at Immanuel Medical Center’s emergency department. He and his wife, Molly, have two daughters. Anne attends Millard South, and Katherine attends Andersen Middle School.

While Chess’ heart has been fine, a muscle strain has slowed him.

The tweak came while training last week. It’s improved, but he still isn’t able to train as much as he’d like.

“I don’t know if it will stop me from competing,” he said. “I hope to participate this year.”

He has already done his homework by scouting his competition.

“I don’t know any competitors personally, but I checked out who was signed up on the Web page to see what they’ve done lately. I did as much research as I could,” he said.

Chess’ ultimate goal is to walk away with a medal.

“I’m just fortunate I could compete,” he said. “But I’m hoping to win, actually. I’m hoping to be competitive and do really well.”

Getting in the Games

While not all participants may have had to face such a steep comeback curve as Richard Chess, many athletes use the Cornhusker State Games to maintain their fitness.

“There’s no question, in almost all the events, you’re looking at a goal for people to put on their calendars that reminds them to get fit and stay fit,” said Dave Mlnarik, executive director of the Nebraska Sports Council.

Although 30-40 percent of the participants each year had not competed the previous year, that doesn’t mean they’re first-timers, Mlnarik said.

“The ones who didn’t come last year may be coming back this year,” he said. “I feel extremely comfortable saying 20 percent or less are participating in their first games.”

The number of sports offered at the event varies from year to year, but this year there are 64, according to Nebraska Sports Council office manager Tami McLaughlin.

Many special events have been planned for the 25th anniversary of the State Games. “The opening ceremonies are going to be extremely spectacular,” McLaughlin said.

Contact the writer:

444-1201, sports@owh.com