By Faye Burdzinski and Bill Evans Pahrump Valley Times

September 16, 2026 - 4:39 am

Pahrump swimmer Cathy Behrens added a silver medal to her collection Sept. 6, finishing second in the women’s 80-to-84 age division in the 50-yard freestyle at the Silver State Games in Las Vegas.

Behrens, 84, competed against three other swimmers at Pavilion Center Pool. She won gold in the event last year with a time of 1 minute, 19.45 seconds.

“I think I actually swam faster this year,” she said.

Behrens has competed in the swimming events every year since 2017, except for the pandemic interruption in 2020. The competition was previously known as the Nevada Senior Games.

During this year’s race, Behrens said, she was focused on her own two lengths of the pool, unaware of the swimmers in adjacent lanes. She did not know she had finished second until the race was over.

Her enthusiasm for competition began long before she entered her first swim meet. At about age 10, she won a speed skating competition at her local roller rink. She still remembers looking back over her shoulder and thinking, “What a rush!”

After that, she welcomed opportunities to compete, even in sack races at summer picnics.

A strong swimmer, Behrens signed up for a swimming event in a Las Vegas Corporate Challenge in 2016. She earned her first gold medal there and has since added eight more at the state senior games.

“I can never see myself losing the enthusiasm I have at the Silver State Games. I love the energy there. All of the athletes are so very supportive of each other.”

Behrens said she is considering a return to the National Senior Games, scheduled for June 30-July 11, 2027, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She enjoyed her first appearance at nationals in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 2019.

But her next competition may take her out of the pool and into the kitchen.

Behrens plans to enter the Pahrump Fall Festival’s arts, crafts, food and horticulture exhibit with what she calls “Cathy’s Famous Peanut Butter Cookies.”

Contact sports reporter Bill Evans at wevans@pvtimes.com.