PORT ANGELES — It’s a match made on Mars — 76 women and six men signed up for the Olympic Weight Loss Challenge, and more men are wanted to even out the competition.
With 82 entries including only a half-dozen men, there isn’t a lot of competition for the men’s cash prizes, said contest organizer Bonnie Stehr.
“That’s $1,000 worth of prize money the top three will split,” Stehr said.
The prizes will be based on the percentage of body weight shed.
First prize will be $500, second prize will be $350, and the third-place finisher will receive $200 in men’s and women’s divisions.
Registration will remain open through Friday at Therapeutic Associates, 1114 Georgiana St.
Entry fees are $100 for individuals, and pairs or couples each pay $50.
Contestants only have to lose 5 percent of their body weight to share the prize money, Stehr said.
Last year, the contestants averaged 19.6 pounds shed, and 48 contestants met the 5 percent requirement and were awarded $92, she said.
Half of the proceeds are returned to the contestants as prize money, and half is donated to Volunteers in Medicine of the Olympics.
In 2012, two rounds of the challenge raised nearly $6,000 for VIMO, and Stehr was awarded an additional $2,500 prize for VIMO, after being selected by a national medical magazine.
The December issue of WebMD magazine featured Stehr as one of the magazine’s four 2012 Health Heroes award winners.
Stehr, who works at Therapeutic Associates and volunteers with VIMO, coordinated with the two health groups to come up with the Olympic Weight Loss Challenge — an effort to increase the fitness and health of community members while raising funds for VIMO.
For information on the contest, phone Stehr at 360-417-6956 or Therapeutic Associates at 360-452-6216, or email thestehrway@msn.com.
Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
