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Registration opened this past Monday for the 2010 Daytona Beach Half Marathon. The third annual race will be held on Halloween morning, October 31.
The 13.1-mile course features one of the most unique routes in the running world. The first 2.2 miles are on the track at Daytona International Speedway. The course then winds through the city, reaches the beach, then returns to the track and finishes at the Speedway's actual finish line. Last year's half marathon attracted 750 runners from around the world, and more are expected this Halloween.
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A PERSONAL MESSAGE FROM SAM
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| When is the warmer weather going to finally arrive (and stay) in Central Florida? It made for a chilly, but certainly exciting, Daytona 500 this past Sunday. A record 21 different leaders...52 lead changes...and a new champ: Jamie McMurray. Add that to the NASCAR debut of Danica Patrick last Saturday, and it was certainly a memorable Hershey's Milk and Milkshakes Speedweeks 2010!
Speaking of the race, the day after was a great one for the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce. Monday's Annual Meeting attracted nearly 2,000 guests at the Ocean Center. That's nearly triple the amount of last year's attendees. Congratulations!
Now Volusia County prepares for Bike Week 2010, which begins next weekend. The Speedway will host more races at Daytona, including the Daytona 200 and the Daytona Supercross by Honda. Another highlight of the big week is a community-wide military tribute event at the Plaza Resort and Spa on March 4-6. "A Walk with Heroes" will include a compete replica of the Vietnam Wall, live music and a balloon launch.
Other great area sporting events coming up in the next few weeks include the WinterJam Action Sports and Music Festival (February 19-20 at the Bandshell and the Ocean Center) and the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters at the Ocean Center (February 23).
This is the second edition of the Sports Commission's new Volusia County Impact Report. Check out the link to the left. We just learned that two more major college golf events are coming to our community. We are continuing to expand and improve the layout. We hope you find it informative and useful. Thank you again for your support of the Central Florida Sports Commission!
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Best Regards,
Sam Stark
President/CEO
Central Florida Sports Commission |
ECONOMIC IMPACT |
2009 Yearly Totals
- Hotel Room Nights - 23,503
- Tax Recovery - $168,122.41
- Economic Impact - $10,070,820
- Number of Participants - 10,821
- Number of Spectators - 12,851
- Number of Events - 25
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| IN THE PIPELINE |
In January, the Central Florida Sports Commission hosted a site visit at
Embry-Riddle with USA Taekwondo, which was arranged in response to our  recent proposal to host a 2010 National Qualifier. Upon the conclusion of the visit, the taekwondo event director agreed to host the event on May 21-23 in Daytona Beach. It is expected to attract nearly 900 youth adult and youth athletes, coaches, spectators and officials.
The Sports Commission continues to prepare for two Atlantic Sun Conference Championships coming up in April. A conference representative traveled to New Smyrna Beach and met with the CFSC on February 5 in advance of the A-Sun Women's Golf Conference Championship which will be staged April 11-14 at Venetian Bay. The Sports Commission and Stetson University will also welcome the A-Sun's Men's and Women's Tennis Championship to Deland April 14-17.
Other events in the pipeline include a county-wide breakfast in May that will honor our community's best high school student-athletes. The Sports Commission also met earlier this month with USA Volleyball-Florida Region officials as we try to develop a statewide adult sand and grass volleyball invitational for this coming September. We will keep you updated on these events as more information becomes available. |
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| WINS & LOSSES
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 Bids Submitted -2
- Wins - 1
- Losses - 0
The Sports Commission submitted two bids on behalf of Volusia County during the first month of 2010. In early January, in tandem with the Daytona Beach CVB and the Ocean Center, the CFSC submitted a proposal to host the 2010 US Fencing Junior/Cadet/Y14 & Junior Team North American Cup. The event would be held November 12-15 at the Ocean Center and attract more than 2,000 participants, coaches and spectators.
Also in January, the CFSC submitted a proposal and was selected to host a Hoop It Up 3 v 3 basketball championship at the Daytona Beach Bandshell on Memorial Day weekend. The event is expected to attract approximately 60 teams (500+ athletes), and will be held simultaneously with the Let it Fly World Championships at Embry-Riddle on May 22-23.
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| COMMUNITY PROFILE |
 It's time to play ball! College baseball season begins this weekend for Stetson and Bethune-Cookman (Embry-Riddle and Daytona State threw out the first pitches at the end of January). B-CU is again expected to have a great season and is the unanimous preseason choice to win a fifth consecutive MEAC title. Mervyl Melendez's team has made the NCAA tournament in nine of the last 10 years. B-CU opens the season on the west coast at the Major League Baseball Urban Classic in Compton, California. The Wildcats play Cal State Northridge on Friday and 23rd ranked UCLA Saturday at 9pm. The UCLA game will be broadcast nationally on the MLB Network. Bethune-Cookman plays its first home game on Tuesday, March 2 against Stetson.
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