Sports And Tourism In Colorado Springs?

By: Mike Moran

April 18, 2010

Mike Moran was the chief spokesman for the United States Olympic Committee through thirteen Games, 1980-2002. The Omaha, Nebraska native was the Sports Information Director at the University of Colorado for a decade before joining the USOC in 1978 as it left New York City for Colorado Springs. He was the Senior Communications Counselor for NYC2012, New York City’s Olympic bid group from 2003-2005 and is now a media consultant. Reach him at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  and read more of his columns at www.coloradospringssports.org

A Sunday piece in The Gazette spent a lot of time on the nervousness about the potential damage to tourism in our town due to cutbacks in the budget of Experience Colorado Springs, our hard-working convention and visitors bureau………and listing the usual lineup of “attractions” that draw the largest numbers in the area as they have done for years………….nowhere in the piece is the word Sports used in any context, though I did spend the better part of a half hour with the author of the piece, Andy Wineke, chatting about the positive impact on tourism that our sports community has in this critical issue to our economy………….I’m getting used to being ignored or tagged irrelevant after lengthy interviews, so let me throw it out there for you myself today…………..Colorado Springs is many things for potential visitors, and there is justified concern about the numerous stories or television reports about the city in the last year and beyond and their impact on tourism and businesses looking for a new home………….but the city and its residents annually receive a bonus from our Sports family and the scores of governing bodies and organizations, led by the United States Olympic Committee, that bring us tourists, visitors and put thousands of people into our hotels, motels, restaurants, attractions and homes and deliver huge economic impact without the fanfare they deserve…….let’s talk about 2010 for starters:

The 2010 Rocky Mountain State Games, hosted by the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation, will bring 8,000 athletes from 120 cities and towns in Colorado and Wyoming to the city, July 30-August 2, as well as some 15,000 other fans, friends and families who will create $8,000,000 in economic impact.

The 88^th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 27, supported with an agreement with the Sports Corp, will bring 5,000 fans and a host of international and domestic motor sport media to the Hill on race day, and 35,000 downtown for the June 25 “Fan Fest” who will enjoy a Friday evening and jam restaurants, bars, clubs, stores and parking garages.

USA Basketball’s June 23-27 FIBA Americas Under-18 Basketball Championships For Women at the Olympic Training Center will bring hundreds of players, coaches and officials from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States to the city.

The USA Boxing National Championships, presented by The Sports Corp and the Daniels Fund, July 12-17, collects more than 200 of the nation’s top Olympic prospects, male and female, for the 2012 London Games, and scores of officials, with prelims at the Olympic Training Center and a championship night on July 17 at the Crowne Plaza.

The U.S. Olympic Assembly, Sept. 23-25 at the Antlers Hilton, is the premier annual gathering of the USOC and the Olympic Family, and will bring some 800 guests, domestic and international, sponsors, sport governing bodies, IOC and media to the city. It’s the first time the USOC has ever staged this blue-chip event in its hometown.

The USA Karate National Intercollegiate & Junior Invitational Championships, November 19-20 and sponsored by The Sports Corp and USA Karate, at the Olympic Training Center, will attract more than 600 athletes and another 100 coaches and officials to the city from across the nation.

Earlier this year:

The Dave Schultz Memorial International wrestling classic at the Olympic Training Center drew hundreds of the world’s best wrestlers from 22 nations for its 12^th edition, February 4-6, sponsored for USA Wrestling by Experience Colorado Springs and supported by The Sports Corp.

The April 9-10 ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships, supported by the Sports Corp for U.S. Figure Skating at the World Arena drew a field of over 200 figure skaters and a host of officials and families from the United States, Australia, Finland, Japan, Austria, France, new Zealand, Belgium, Germany, Russia, Canada, Hungary, South Africa, Croatia, Iceland, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden and the Czech Republic.  

USA Hockey, The Sports Corp and the Colorado Springs World Arena hosted the final stop of the Qwest Tour for the U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team, its final game ahead of Vancouver, with some 5,600 fans watching the USA defeat Finland on February 4.

Like that? Well, we have more on tap this year for our city:

June 29- Sports Corp Football Kickoff Luncheon at the Marriott, with head coaches from Air Force, CSU, CSU-Pueblo and Northern Colorado, as well as a coordinator for the CU Buffs, with a preview of the 2010 season.

The Warrior Games, June 10-14 at the Olympic Training Center will bring 300 athletes who are injured service men and women to compete in swimming, cycling, track & field, shooting, archery, wheelchair basketball, and seated volleyball in a new event sponsored by the USOC and the U.S. department of Defense.

The 11^th Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame annual banquet and induction ceremony is set for October 27 at the World Arena with a crowd upward of 600 to see teams, athletes and individuals inducted and a tribute to this city’s unique and enduring sports legacy and traditions.

USA Pentathlon will stage its 2010 National Championships in Colorado Springs, July 23-25.

I have other dreams for our Sports community and events it could add in the future, like the USOC’s 2012 Olympic Media Summit, an event that I created with Bob Condron during my term at the USOC………it brings in 400-500 media, domestic and international, and as many as 150 athletes headed for London’s Olympic and Paralympic Games………….and the prestigious U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Induction ceremony, staged by the USOC recently in Chicago as a boost to the city’s ill-fated Olympic bid………..no reason now not to bring it home to the city of the USOC, where more than 350,000 athletes chased their own Olympic Dreams, and where the internal support systems trump everything else………..we could put 1,000 people on the floor of the World Arena for it…………a Holiday College Ice Hockey Tournament at the World Arena co-hosted by Colorado College and Air Force, with two visiting teams from power leagues, with CC and AFA switching opponents on the two evenings…………..like the idea of say CC, AFA, Notre Dame and Boston College or Michigan?............or again, the State Games  of America, which our city has staged in a golden triumph three times…….an NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Regional Tourney, The Mountain West Conference Championships in women’s basketball, baseball or volleyball…………..in any case, here’s a tip of the hat to Sports and what it brings to our unique, special city and its residents and their families. Often overlooked and underappreciated, but one of our most valuable assets and contributor to our quality of life.