Name: William Lew Thomas

Honored by The Carroll County Sun for: Winning five gold medal and two silver medals in track and field events at the Senior Citizens Olympics in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Age: 63

Residence; hometown: New Windsor

Occupation: Seniorclaims representative at AVEMPCO Corp. in Frederick

Education: Earned his master's degree at Western Maryland College in Westminster; bachelor's degree from University of Maryland College Park

Family:Sisters: Mary Batten, Charlotte Snyder and Diane Perry

Activities/hobbies: Triathlons, farming

Accomplishments: Won the Hawk (Hagerstown) and the Heart of Maryland (Baltimore) Triathlons; won third place in the 800-meter run at the Maryland Senior Citizens Olympics in Towson, Baltimore County; finished fifth in the 800-meter run at the National Senior Olympics last year in Syracuse, N.Y.

Recipient's comments: "You get to meet a lot of top-notch people at these events. It's fun to be able to compete and not necessarily just winning. Someof the funniest times I've had when losing. All in all, it's better than waiting to go to the hospital and complaining about your illnesses."