The Park Hills resident will be 72 next month and suffers from chronic rheumatoid arthritis, but that doesn't keep him from putting on his running shoes.

The Covington native runs 5K races in the area and sometimes finishes ahead of people half his age. O'Connell's 115-pound frame may not look intimidating, but in 15 recent races, he has won 11 in his age category.

O'Connell says he doesn't run for the glory. He runs for the causes.

"It isn't medals or anything I want ... it's the experience," he said. "I do it because they are fund-raisers for hospitals, or for children."

Tina Marie Brake coordinates Lakeside Park's Mary Steggeman 5K run/walk, which draws around 300 entrants each September.

She said they had to start a 70-plus category because of O'Connell, who finishes around the 20-minute mark.

"He's got excellent time," Brake said. "The winner of the race did it in 18 minutes, so he's fast."

O'Connell runs three to four times a week. He normally runs a nine-minute mile, but recently he ran a mile in 6:08 at Boone County High School.

"I run with 40-year-olds, young kids. One guy, he's a doctor ... he tried to catch me," O'Connell said. "He couldn't."

O'Connell said his rheumatoid arthritis, which involves inflammation in the lining of the joints, doesn't bother him much when he's running.

"I get sore sometimes, but anyone does."

O'Connell works part time at Kremer's Market in Crescent Springs, making deliveries, cleaning and stocking.

He took up walking 13 or 14 years ago, then decided he wanted to run instead. He got involved in the Senior Olympics, then began running in the Thanksgiving Day 10K race in Cincinnati.

His routine involves taking vitamin E and C. He stretches a lot and he tries to steer clear of fried foods.

"I feel better after I run," he said. "They call it a runner's high."

E-mail aremke@enquirer.com