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OPINIONS
Editorial: Area should build on its sports tourism momentum
When people in West Virginia talk about tourism, they're often talking about whitewater rafting. In the Tri-State, they talk of this festival or that year-round attraction. But the big draw in this area could be sports tourism.
Each year, the Big Sandy Superstore Arena is home to the state high school wrestling tournament. This year, Huntington was host to the state 10-11-year-old Little League baseball tournament. Shortly after that, Ceredo-Kenova was home to a tournament of 9-10-year-old state Little League champions. In June, 112 teams came to Barboursville for the West Virginia Soccer Association's Open Cup. Ironton has the Gus Macker 3-on-3 basketball tournament.
There are many, many other such events.
And a big one is coming.
Barboursville will be the host community for the U.S. Youth Region I Soccer Tournament July 2-7, 2009, and July 1-6, 2010.
The tournament will bring 5,000 soccer players on 272 teams from 13 states: Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia.
In town last week to announce the state will contribute $800,000 to help build the fields that are necessary, Gov. Joe Manchin said the tournament could have an economic impact of $12 million in the area. Usually, such statements of economic impact of an event must be taken with several grains of salt, but when you think about 5,000 soccer players, their families, game officials and others for six days, that could be a conservative estimate.
The village of Barboursville is matching the state's contribution. When the tournament starts next year, it will use 16 fields at Barboursville and four at the YMCA Kennedy Center on W.Va. 2.
Opening ceremonies will be conducted Olympics-style at Joan C. Edwards Stadium on the Marshall University campus. The school will provide housing for some teams.
Manchin said 3,000 hotels rooms already have been booked for the 2009 event.
As Mark Bugher, president of the Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce, said, this is like having a Marshall home football game for six consecutive days. As far as economic impact, it might be better than six football games, because almost everyone at the soccer tournament will be from out of town, meaning they will use local restaurants, stores and other businesses.
Sports isn't the kind of activity a person usually associates with tourism. Larger cities such as Indianapolis have shown sports can be a centerpiece of tourism. The Tri-State has the infrastructure to handle an influx of people who travel and spend money for such events. The challenge is attracting more high-profile events.
By the time the tournament starts, Barboursville will have a soccer and recreation complex that can be used for many different types of events. With a good job running the tournament in 2009 and 2010, the region will show it can put on a good event for thousands of people from a wide geographic area. That's the kind of positive image West Virginia needs.
And it could help the area attract more state high school tournaments in various sports.
The Tri-State has less than a year to get ready for a tournament that could improve its image and its tourism business substantially. Barboursville will have to prepare the fields and amenities, but the rest of us have things to do, too. We'll need to fix potholes, pick up the litter, stock up on supplies and do all the other things that leave positive images on visitors' minds.
The payoff could be big.
