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 2008 NCAA Women's Final Four Logo to be Unveiled
The University of South Florida women's basketball team will play its first-ever game in the St. Pete Times Forum, this season, when it faces Vanderbilt on Sunday, December 17 at 3pm. The contest will be the first game of a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader with the nightcap pitting defending NCAA champion Florida against in-state foe Florida A&M at 6 p.m. During the event, the NCAA, Tampa Bay Sports Commission and USF will unveil the 2008 NCAA Women's Final Four logo on the court where the Women's Final Four will be played less than 16 months later.
"Our Women's Final Four logo will serve as the constant reminder of the incredible partnership that we have forged with the NCAA that insures the student-athletes and all involved take away memories that will last a lifetime when they leave Tampa Bay in April of 2008," said Rob Higgins, Executive Director of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission. "We feel that this premier doubleheader will serve as the ideal backdrop to give our community its first glimpse at the branding mark that will hopefully represent the best Women's Final Four ever."
Area Basketball Players Garner Critical College Exposure
 On September 16, at Tampa Prepatory School, 68 Hillsborough County high school juniors and seniors participated in the Southeast Basketball Academy Showcase. This first-time event gave coaches from NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and JUCO the opportunity to scout prospects in the classes of 2007 and 2008.
Ninety-four athletes from Florida, Arkansas, California and Georgia took part in the combine, displaying their individual skills, fundamentals and work ethic. Coaches from more than 25 college basketball programs attended Saturday's event. The first round of skill station work began at 1 p.m. with 3 vs. 3 and 5 vs. 5 games following.
"We feel fortunate to play a role in activating the significant investment Hillsborough County has made in garnering exposure for our area athletes to earn college scholarship funding," said Rob Higgins, Executive Director of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission. "We have experienced incredible success with our annual high school football combine, which was the brainchild of Hillsborough County Commission Chairman Jim Norman. That event has produced millions of dollars in scholarships for our area's athletes, and after studying it closely, we felt the basketball market could yield a similar return on investment for our great county."
SEBA, the event organizer, will list each of the prospects' recruiting profile on their website, www.southeastbasketballacademy.com, so the coaches can stay in contact with any of the participants. Due to the recruiting limitations set by the NCAA on Division I programs, SEBA videotaped and will evaluate this 1-day event with the intent to distribute the videos to schools unable to attend.
"We are extremely excited to be part of such a great event," said Mike McManamey, Director of the Southeast Basketball Academy. "This type of event is sorely needed in our state as we have some of the best athletes in the country that go unrecruited and unnoticed. We are hoping to build lasting relationships with both High School and College coaches in order to create opportunities for our state's athletes to play at the next level."
US National Dragon Boat Racing Championship Deemed a Success
 On August 25-27, the Tampa Bay Sports Commission partnered with the Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Tampa Bay International Dragon Boat Federation to host the 2006 USDBF US National Dragon Boat Racing Championship at Garrison Channel in downtown Tampa. The championship drew over 1800 participants from 60 crews to the bay area, which resulted in nearly 2000 room nights for the weekend.
"This has been the best National Championship to date, and future sites will have a tough time trying to beat Tampa," said Jeff Campbell, technical director of USDBF.
Consisting of a Premier and a US Club Open Division, this year's US Championship resulted in 12 teams, including seven from the Philadelphia Dragon Boat Association, earning births to represent Team USA at the 2007 IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championship in Sydney, Australia.
In addition to hosting this prestigious event, the Tampa Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau also coordinated a site visit with IDBF President and Technical Official, Mike Haslam, to discuss the possibility of hosting the 2011 World Championships in Tampa. The IDBF approved the course site, and the USDBF approved Tampa to become the US candidate city to compete for the World Championships. The championships could result in over 3,000 competitors from up to 50 countries coming to the area. With the 2009 championships being held in Moscow, this would mark the first time since 2001 in Philadelphia that the USA has hosted the World Championship which.
"The layout, the hotels, the depth of the water - it just makes sense here," said Terri Parnell of the Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau, who was responsible for coordinating the IDBF site visit during this year's nationals along with the on-going development of the 2011 world's bid.
Youth Baseball and Soccer Create Memorable Labor Day Weekend
Over 230 youth baseball and soccer teams from across the country traveled to Hillsborough County September 1-4 to participate in two major Labor Day events. The Florida Amateur Athletic Union (AAU)/Sunshine Sports 1st Pitch Classic brought over 90 youth baseball teams to the area, and the 10th Annual Black Watch Labor Day Tournament featured over 140 youth boys and girls soccer teams. Combined, the two tournaments generated close to 3,000 hotel room nights.
"We're pleased to be able to support a full weekend of youth sports that saw our community play host to over 3,000 competitors and their families," said Jason Aughey, Sales and Events Manager of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission. "We're very proud of our incredible relationship with the AAU Baseball and Black Watch Soccer families, and we have heard nothing but rave reviews about the exciting and memorable weekend."
The AAU 1st Pitch Classic entered its second year in Tampa. This three-day event involved over 1,000 athletes from across the state ranging in age from seven to 12 years old. Competition took place at the Ed Radice Sports Complex, Lutz Little League and Skyway Park.
The Black Watch Labor Day Tournament celebrated its 10th year in Tampa. The event drew teams from across the country to compete. Over 2,000 athletes aged eight to 16 participated in the three-day event. Competition took place at the Black Watch Soccer Club, Otis Andrews Park in Plant City, and Ed Radice Sports Complex.
"From all of our club members and families, I want to thank the Tampa Bay Sports Commission for supporting youth athletics and look forward to continuing our relationship with an organization that helps youth athletic organizations like ours," said Tom Scallon, president of Black Watch Soccer Club.
Tampa Bay Sports Commission to Kick-off Fall Travel Season
A September 18 trip to Denver for the National Association of Sports Commissions' (NASC) Large Market Sports Commissions Meeting marks the beginning on the fall travel season for the Tampa Bay Sports Commission. With the goal of attracting more amateur sporting events to Tampa, this fall's travels include trips to national conventions for sports associations such as the National Softball Association, United States Specialty Sports Association, American Softball Association, International Softball Association and US Rowing. The staff will also be headed to Las Vegas in October to once again attend the Travel, Events and Management in Sports (TEAMS) Conference, which features over 400 event organizers from around the nation. Just this month, Tradeshow Week magazine named TEAMS one of the "50 Fastest-Growing Trade Shows" for the third consecutive year
Upcoming Events
Get REV'd Crosstown Expressway Run
The Tampa Bay Sports Commission will be one of two beneficiaries of the Get REV'd Crosstown Expressway Run that will take place on Saturday, September 23 at the entrance of the Reversible Express Lanes of the Selmon Crosstown Expressway on the corner of Twiggs St. and Meridian Ave. Sponsored by Lifestyle Family Fitness and Smoothie King, the run consists of 3 races with the 10K beginning at 7:30am, followed by the 5K at 8:30am and the 1 mile walk at 9:15am.
The run, which commemorates the opening of the expressway's express lane, will host a pre-party on Friday, September 22 at Channelside with music, food and drink specials, a fitness expo, prizes and a free slice of pizza from NY Pizza & Deli to all those that pick up their race bag.
For more information or to register for the run, log on to www.tampa-xway.com or www.active.com.
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