By: Deborah Johnson Wood
The West Michigan Sports Commission spent 2007 building partnerships with local sports associations. Those partnerships, which now involves at least 17 different events, could generate 20,000 tourists and $12 million for West Michigan in the next three years.
"We want to focus on the opportunities out there, like fencing, rugby, gymnastics, and hockey," says Mike Guswiler, sports commission executive director, "Our relationship with the Amateur Athletic Union will bring the 2008 AAU Softball Central Region Championship and a national beach volleyball national qualifier to the region."
U.S. Airborne Gymnastics is one of the commission's new partners. The commission is helping with the annual U.S. Airborne Gymnastics Invitational at Cornerstone University on March 1 and 2. The event attracts 350 competitors and their families from Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and Canada, and could inject some $185,000 into Grand Rapids hotels, restaurants, shops, and attractions. Winners will move to national competitions as Olympic hopefuls.
"We can raise awareness of any event and what it brings to West Michigan," Guswiler says. "We help put proposals together highlighting the benefits of the area, we identify the needs of the tournament organizers, locate facilities, get sponsors and volunteers, and other services. And it all gets to the underlying reason of why we exist and that's to draw economic benefit to the community."
Other partnerships the commission established involve a variety of events, including the Great Lakes Lacrosse Classic, the Grand Haven Beach Vault, the Men's and Women's Collegiate LAU Rugby Championships and the National Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions. The latter event, alone, will bring some $1 million to the region.
Source: Mike Guswiler, West Michigan Sports Commission
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Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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