 John Disterdick |  |
M60-69
John Disterdick
Multisport
Chattanooga, Tenn.
Just reading John Disterdick's frenetic competition schedule is enough to make you winded all by itself. In 2007, he earned medals in boxing, swimming, cycling, water skiing, rowing, volleyball, weightlifting and triathlon. "My whole thing is diversity," the 65-year-old said. In November, he won the 60+ National Masters Boxing heavyweight title in Memphis and took home the bronze medal in his age category at Chattanooga's Head of the Hooch, the second largest rowing regatta in the country.
Earlier in 2007, the 6-foot, 4-inch, 176-pound Disterdick won the World Masters light heavyweight championship in Kansas City, Mo., placed first in a slalom water skiing competition in Georgia, won his age category in the Scenic City Triathlon in Chattanooga and won the 65-69 age group title at the Southeast Regional Triathlon. He also took home the silver medal in triathlon at the 2007 National Senior Games.
Not bad for a man who remembers being the kid no one wanted on his team. "I grew up in a neighborhood where I was the youngest and least athletic, so I was the last one picked for most everything," said Disterdick, who was raised in North Hollywood, Calif. "I came from a family that was totally not sports-oriented -- we never went to any sports event or competed in any."
Disterdick got his first introduction to organized sports as a freshman at Purdue University. Discouraged after trying out for the football team, he eventually went out for swimming. He swam for Purdue for four years, finishing up as the team's co-captain, before enlisting in the Army. "Swimming at Purdue really launched me and showed me I could compete in a sport," he said. "The Army introduced me to skydiving, boxing and track and field."
After the Army, Disterdick returned to California and became an actor, appearing in local and national commercials. He met and married his wife, Desiree, a former Miss Tennessee. Together, they have five children. Disterdick also has a son from a previous marriage.
The family moved to Desiree's hometown of Chattanooga several years ago, but Disterdick remains in the entertainment industry. Through his own company, Philadelphia Films, he's trying to launch "Redefining Aging Through Fitness," a reality television series. "In the show I'd go around the country and actually compete in (Masters) events and interview people who've used athletics as a way to overcome other issues in life," said Disterdick, who recently presented his idea to several networks.