Healthy for the Long Run

Sean Ballard has asthma, but he keeps up with his classmates in physical education at Palmdale’s Highland High School. Basketball, jogging, push-ups, sit-ups.

“I do ‘em all,” Sean, 14, said this week. “We just did the [periodic] fitness test. I jogged the mile in 9 minutes 16 seconds.”

Come Sunday at the University Track at Cal State Northridge, Sean will compete in a regional athletic event, the Breath Games, organized to give kids with asthma a chance to participate in track and field events.

Sean says the games, held each year since 1986 at various Southern California sites, give asthmatic kids ages 5 to 14 a chance “to be the same as other kids.” Sean has participated in the Breath Games since he was 11, competing in the high jump, long jump, 50-yard dash and obstacle course, among other events.

Trained medical personnel supervise the games, sponsored by the American Lung Assn. of Los Angeles County and the CSUN Center for Student Health. The founder of the Breath Games, Jud Schoendorf, will welcome participants at opening ceremonies Sunday at 1 p.m., along with Lori Broderson, a CSUN swim team member who has asthma.

After a musical greeting by the Children’s Choir of the Colburn School of Music, the 100-plus children registered to compete will march around the track accompanied by the Patrick Henry Middle School band.

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Expert physical instruction for younger children and beginner competitors will be provided by graduate students in the CSUN kinesiology department and staff members from the American Lung Assn.

Each child will receive a packet of information on how to better manage this breathing disorder. The games will conclude at 4 p.m.

Participants will receive T-shirts, ribbons and medals. Organizers require that at least one parent or guardian accompany participants during the games and strongly suggest clearance be obtained from the child’s doctor beforehand.

On-site registration, in Spanish and English, will be available Sunday for $10 a child. Scholarships are available.

“Come early enough to be registered and participate in the opening grand march,” said Johanna Goldberg, vice president of programs for the lung association.

Participation has risen in recent years from dozens to hundreds because the lung association has worked at schools to raise awareness that asthmatic kids can lead normal, athletic lives, Goldberg said.

She estimates more than 300,000 children in Los Angeles County suffer from asthma.

BE THERE

The Breath Games, University Track, Cal State Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St. Parking in Lot T at Lassen Street and Lindley Avenue. Sunday, 1-4 p.m. Free admission. $10 registration fee for participants. (323) 935-5864.