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Featured Article | |
High School football playoffs begin this/next weekend, and the road to the state championship leads to Orlando!
The FHSAA Football Finals will be held right here in Central Florida at the Florida Citrus Bowl. The four-day event consists of eight state championship games with two games played on Friday and two games played on Saturday of both weekends. The dates for the 2011 Football Finals are Dec. 9, 10, 16 and 17.
More than a few teams in Orange County, including Apopka, Bishop Moore, Boone, Dr. Phillips, Edgewater, Evans, First Academy, Lake Highland Prep, Olympia, Timber Creek and Winter Park will compete in the playoffs with the chance to advance to the State Championship. Click HERE for the FHSAA playoff brackets and check out your team's Road to Orlando.
Hopefully your favorite team will make it, but even if they don't you will not want to miss the best high school football in the nation. Many of the players that compete in the FHSAA Football Finals will surely go on to be the next stars in the NCAA and even the NFL. General admission tickets are $12, and for the first time ever you will have the ability to purchase a reserved seat. Skip the lines and guarantee yourself a seat close to all the action for only $17. Click HERE to purchase your tickets today.
For more information about the FHSAA Football Finals, visit our website at www.roadtoorlando.org or follow us on our new Road to Orlando facebook page.
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| | A PERSONAL MESSAGE FROM BRENT | |
With some crisp temperatures moving in, fall is definitely in the air, and that means High School fall sports state championships right here in Central Florida.
First on the starting block is the FHSAA Swimming & Diving State Championships, which was held at the YMCA Aquatic Center November 10-12. More than 6,000 athletes and spectators packed into the Aquatic Center for three great days of competition. The event is expected to generate nearly 4,000 room nights and close to $1 million of economic impact for our local economy.
And kicking off in December, the FHSAA Football Finals are back at the Florida Citrus Bowl. 2011 marks the first year of a new three year contract that will keep the Football Finals in Orlando through 2013. Check out the featured article section for more information, and learn how to purchase reserved seat tickets for the first time ever at the FHSAA Football Finals.
Throughout the community, there is no shortage of first class sporting events to fill your weekends. First, the LPGA's best compete in the tour's final event of the year at the CME Group Titleholders. For the 2nd year in a row the LPGA's finale will take place at Grand Cypress Resort November 17-20. Of course you won't want to miss the annual weekend of festivities that surround the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Florida Classic. Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman square off for bragging rights on November 19 at the Florida Citrus Bowl. If college basketball is more to your liking, head down to  Disney World over Thanksgiving weekend for the Old Spice Classic. Eight teams from across the country compete for the Old Spice title at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex November 24, 25 & 27. Lastly, a Monday night basketball showdown between Florida and Stetson will tip off at the Amway Center November 28th, in the 2nd annual Florida Citrus Sports Shootout.
It has also been a busy month on the business development front, with lots of great opportunities on the horizon for both the City of Orlando and Orange County. Read more about our recent activity below.
Thank you for your continued support, as we continue to market Orlando and Orange County as the "Ultimate Sports Destination". |
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Best Regards,
Brent Nelson
Interim Executive Director
Central Florida Sports Commission |
| ECONOMIC IMPACT |
Year to Date (through September, 2011)
Hotel Room Nights: 10,885
Tax Recovery: $107,290.94
Economic Impact: $6,493,776.00
Number of Participants: 2,645
Number of Spectators: 32,311
Number of Events: 6
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IN THE PIPELINE | |
As mentioned in last month's impact report, the Sports Commission recently sent representation to Colorado Springs, Colorado and Las Vegas, Nevada to network with national event organizers such as USA Gymnastics, USA Figure Skating, USA Karate, USA Diving, USA Volleyball, USA Water Polo and USA Fencing, just to name few. As a result of our meetings, several national and regional event opportunities for future years are being evaluated for venues within the City of Orlando and Orange County.
One in particular is a national fencing event with USA Fencing. USA Fencing is looking for a site for one of their national events for June/July of 2012, so we have recently been in touch with the Orange County Convention Center to check on availability. Should we be able to secure space, the next steps will be to check on hotel room availability in close proximity to the Convention Center. Based on our diligence, over 8,000+ participants, coaches and spectators could be in attendance at this particular event. We hope to be able to share more details in next month's impact.
Another lead generated from our trips to the West Coast was the opportunity to work with USA Water Polo on some future events. USA Water Polo is eager to strengthen its presence in Florida, specifically Central Florida, so we hoping to bid on and/or create some new events with them in and around Orange County and the City of Orlando. Multiple aquatics venues would have to be utilized should we attempt to host some regional or national events with USA Water Polo. |
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| WINS & LOSSES
(As of October, 2011) |
Formal Bids Submitted: 8
Total Bids Won: 4
Total Bids Lost: 2
The Sports Commission and Visit Orlando have been recently working with the National Soccer Coaches Association of America with respect to potentially hosting a created national conference for the summer of 2013. While the NSCAA already hosts an annual conference in January, they are looking at developing another conference for later in the year where coaches from across the United States can come together for additional educational and networking purposes. Multiple properties in Orange County are being considered, and we hope to be able to get representatives from the NSCAA into town sometime in next month or so to tour potential host properties.
In other news, the Sports Commission recently hosted a site visit at the Amway Center with staff from the Southeastern Conference (SEC) with respect to hosting the 2017 and 2018 Men's Basketball Tournament. The tournament is currently booked thru 2016, but the SEC is eager to begin the process of finding a suitable venue for each year. The Men's Tournament is typically staged either the first or second week of March annually. We expect a revised RFP to be forwarded out to interested communities in the spring, with proposals due to the SEC office sometime during the summer. Based on our conversations, the SEC might make a decision for a location of the 2017 or 2018 tournament in December of 2012. We look forward to working with our local partners to potentially bring this outstanding event to our community for either (or both) years. Stay tuned!
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UPCOMING EVENTS
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| COMMUNITY PROFILE |
You are never too old to jump!
Joe Johnston from Apopka embodies that sentiment. At 67 years young, Joe is a USA Track and Field Masters World Record holder, capturing records in both the 60-64 and 65-69 age divisions. His best vault over the age of 60 is 12 feet 1 & ½ inches, which he accomplished in 2006 in Clermont. Joe is also a world ranker hurdler and national champion in the heptathlon.
Click HERE to check out a video of "Jumpin' Joe" doing his thing.
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