SPORTS TOURISM ON CITY'S RADAR WESTERN STATES POLICE AND FIRE GAMES MAY COME.Byline: JUDY O'ROURKE Staff WriterSANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, -- The city is trying to attract more sports tourism and is primed to land the 2009 Western States Police and Fire Games, one of the largest sporting events in the nation. So far, Santa Clarita is the only city in contention. ``Santa Clarita is a perfect city for this type of event,'' said Mike Graham Michael Gossett was a professional wrestler better known as Mike Graham. He is the son of legendary wrestler and promoter Eddie Graham. Career Michael Gossett , president of the California Police Athletic Federation, the nonprofit group that administers the games. ``It is normally a profit-making experience -- the local area should get $3.5 million to $6 million or $7 million.'' Law enforcement and fire service employees -- both men and women -- participate in the annual eight-day event, modeled on the Olympics. It usually attracts 5,000 to 6,000 competitors for the 60 or so competitions, and about 18,000 spectators watch from the sidelines. The peace officers and firefighters hail from Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico New Mexico, state in the SW United States. At its northwestern corner are the so-called Four Corners, where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah meet at right angles; New Mexico is also bordered by Oklahoma (NE), Texas (E, S), and Mexico (S). , Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The games are partly funded by athletes' entry fees, sponsorships and advertising. The event originated in 1967 as the California Police Olympics; firefighters joined in 2000. It was held in San Diego in 2006 and is planned for Mesa, Ariz., in 2007 and Boise, Idaho, in 2008. Among the bigger sports-related happenings in Santa Clarita in 2006 were the AT&T Golf Classic, held at the Valencia Country Club; the ATP ATP: see adenosine triphosphate. ATP in full adenosine triphosphate Organic compound, substrate in many enzyme-catalyzed reactions (see catalysis) in the cells of animals, plants, and microorganisms. Tennis Tournament at the Paseo Club; Masters and Junior Olympic swim meets at the city's Aquatic Center; the Synergy Softball tournament at Central Park and the USA Luge luge (l  zh), a type of small sled on which one or two persons, lying face up, slide feet first down snowy hillsides or down steeply banked, curving, iced chutes similar to those used in tryouts on Centre Pointe Parkway. The stellar draw is expected to be the Amgen Tour of California The Amgen Tour of California is a professional cycling stage race on the UCI America Tour and USA Cycling Professional Tour that made its debut on February 19, 2006. Sponsored by the biotechnology company Amgen, the eight-day race covers between 650-700 miles (1,045 - 1,126 km). , billed as America's most important cycling race. It's the first race of the season for the world's elite racing teams, many of whom will compete in the Tour de France Tour de France World's most prestigious and difficult bicycle race. Staged for three weeks each July—usually in some 20 daylong stages—the Tour typically comprises 20 professional teams of nine riders each and covers some 3,600 km (2,235 miles) of flat and . About 100,000 spectators are expected to attend the race in February. ``Sports tourism is something we're putting a lot of emphasis on,'' said Evan Thomason, a spokesman for the city. ``The main draw is to get tourism in here and showcase our city, but an added benefit is it's another attraction and entertainment avenue for residents.'' judy.orourke@dailynews.com (661) 257-5255 |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion