Don’t underestimate these speedy seniors. They’re formidable KC-area racewalkers

Talented senior athletes from the Kansas City area won national and international medals in the span of a month this spring.

In February, Heartland Racewalkers club president David Eisenberg earned a silver medal in the 3,000-meter race walk at the USATF National Masters Indoor Championships in Gainesville, Florida.

Eisenberg competed in the age 75-79 division.

At the same event, past club president Alan Poisner took bronze in the 1,500-meter run (90-94 division). He was the only walker in the race, but his finishing time was fast enough to earn an All-American rating.

He also beat three runners who were competing in a younger age division.

A larger event, the World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships, took place in Gainesville four weeks later. And the Eisenberg-Poisner duo again showed their command on their respective race courses.

Eisenberg placed third among American athletes — fifth among 13 aged 75-79 — in the 3,000-meter indoor walk.

Poisner, meanwhile, claimed the gold medal in the 90-94 walking division. His time was faster than the silver medalist in the 85-89 division and he avoided being disqualified for failing to maintain form, a fate that befell four walkers in the 80-84 division.

The first staging of the biennial World Masters Athletics Indoor track and field meet in the United States attracted some 4,000 athletes from 80 countries.

This story was originally published April 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM.