Rules and Suggestions

Welcome to the official Senior Olympics Rules & Suggestions page. Here, you’ll find the most up-to-date rulebooks for every sport featured in our Games. Whether you’re a first-time participant or a seasoned competitor, understanding the specific rules for your sport ensures fair play, safety, and the best overall experience. Each sport follows a standardized set of rules developed to support athletes aged 50 and over. Our rules promote inclusivity, sportsmanship, and healthy competition across all skill levels. Click on any sport name below to view or download the sport-specific rulebook in PDF format.

Official NMSO Sport Rules

• Airgun – Safety guidelines, target distances, and scoring.
• Archery – Safety guidelines, target distances, and scoring.
• Badminton – Singles and doubles rules, court dimensions, and scoring systems.
• Basketball (3-on-3) – Court setup, player rotation, fouls, free throws, 3 point shots, and time limits.
• Billiards 8 Ball Pool – Rules, Dimensions, and Scoring.
• Bowling – Equipment standards, scoring formats, and lane etiquette.
• Cornhole – Format, Scoring, and rule details.
• Cycling – Race formats, equipment requirements, and safety protocols.
• Field – rules, and scoring details.
• Frisbee Accuracy – rules, and scoring details.
• Frisbee Distance – Rules, and scoring details.
• Golf – Stroke play rules, pace of play, and senior-appropriate adjustments.
• Horseshoes – Pitching distances, scoring guidelines, and competition flow.
• Pickleball – Serving, court rules, and doubles play regulations.
• Powerlifting – Judging criteria, scoring, and rules.
• Power Walk – Judging criteria, race distances, and pacing rules.
• Race Walk – Form requirements, penalties, and official timing.
• Road Race – Age-group categories, timing procedures, and course rules.
• Shuffleboard – Game scoring, shot placement, and match format.
• Softball – Batting lineups, pitching rules, and age-division regulations.
• Soccer Accuracy – rules, event distances, and scoring details.
• Softball Distance – rules, event distances, and scoring details.
• Swimming – Stroke rules, event distances, and heat advancement.
• Table Tennis – Singles and doubles rules, paddle standards, and match scoring.
• TAI CHI – Detail of Rules.
• Tennis – Set formats, tie-break rules, and player categories.
• Track – Event standards, age groupings, and performance scoring.
• Field – Event standards, age groupings, and performance scoring.
• Triathlon – Segment lengths, transition rules, and timekeeping.
• Volleyball – Team play structure, rotation, and net violations.

• Airgun – Safety guidelines, target distances, and scoring.
• Archery – Safety guidelines, target distances, and scoring.
• Badminton – Singles and doubles rules, court dimensions, and scoring systems.
• Basketball (3-on-3) – Court setup, player rotation, fouls, free throws, 3 point shots, and time limits.
• Billiards 8 Ball Pool – Rules, Dimensions, and Scoring.
• Bowling – Equipment standards, scoring formats, and lane etiquette.
• Cornhole – Format, Scoring, and rule details.
• Cycling – Race formats, equipment requirements, and safety protocols.
• Field – rules, and scoring details.
• Frisbee Accuracy – rules, and scoring details.
• Frisbee Distance – Rules, and scoring details.
• Golf – Stroke play rules, pace of play, and senior-appropriate adjustments.
• Horseshoes – Pitching distances, scoring guidelines, and competition flow.
• Pickleball – Serving, court rules, and doubles play regulations.
• Powerlifting – Judging criteria, scoring, and rules.
• Power Walk – Judging criteria, race distances, and pacing rules.
• Race Walk – Form requirements, penalties, and official timing.
• Road Race – Age-group categories, timing procedures, and course rules.
• Shuffleboard – Game scoring, shot placement, and match format.
• Softball – Batting lineups, pitching rules, and age-division regulations.
• Soccer Accuracy – rules, event distances, and scoring details.
• Softball Distance – rules, event distances, and scoring details.
• Swimming – Stroke rules, event distances, and heat advancement.
• Table Tennis – Singles and doubles rules, paddle standards, and match scoring.
• TAI CHI – Detail of Rules.
• Tennis – Set formats, tie-break rules, and player categories.
• Track – Event standards, age groupings, and performance scoring.
• Field – Event standards, age groupings, and performance scoring.
• Triathlon – Segment lengths, transition rules, and timekeeping.
• Volleyball – Team play structure, rotation, and net violations.

Need help locating a rulebook or understanding competition formats? Contact your event coordinator or visit our FAQs page.

Suggestions & Feedback

As the Senior Olympics continues to grow, we welcome input from our athlete community. Whether you want to propose a new sport or event or recommend an update to an existing rule, your ideas are an important part of how we evolve each year.

Suggest a New Sport, Event, or Demo Activity

Have an idea for a sport not currently offered in the Senior Olympics? We encourage athletes, coaches, and community members to submit suggestions for new sports, events, or demonstration activities. These ideas help us explore ways to make the Games more dynamic and engaging for all participants across the U.S.

Propose a Rule Change for Future Games

Rules evolve over time—especially as the needs and feedback of senior athletes change. If you’ve experienced something in competition that you believe warrants a change, you can propose a rule amendment using the official form. All suggestions are reviewed by the Senior Olympics Rules Committee in advance of the next competition cycle.

Submitting a suggestion is easy and helps keep the Games relevant, inclusive, and athlete-driven.