Skip to main content

Natural Awakenings South Central Pennsylvania

Mental Gymnastics on Display

The USA Memory Championship elimination rounds will be held from 9 to 11 a.m., May 7,  at the Hershey Lodge. A championship sudden death competition of the seven finalists vying for the National Individual title begins at 12:30 p.m.

This Olympiad for “thinking” games has been held annually in New York City since 1997. Set up as a sporting event for mental athletes, the tournament consists of memory challenging competitive events that include memorization of 99 names and faces, a shuffled deck of cards, an unpublished poem, speed numbers and a list of 500 words. Entrants compete for gold, silver and bronze awards in individual competitions, as well as for the entire event. National champions can move on to other competitions, such as the International Memory Competition. 

Founder Tony Dottino found a consensus that believes as we get older, we lose our memory.  He set out to educate people, both professionally and personally that, "Your brain is like a muscle.  Exercise it! When given the proper training, it gets stronger, regardless of age.” 

Admission is free. Location: 325 University Dr., Hershey. Register at usamemorychampionship.com.