WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |ALL-STAR Sports Week returns To Montgomery

ALL-STAR Sports Week returns To Montgomery

Posted by Bryan Henry  -  bio | email

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - All-Star Sports Week started in Montgomery in 1997 and left in 2004.

"It left due to renovations of downtown Montgomery. At that time it moved to Huntsville," said Alabama High School Athletic Association Executive Director Steve Bailey.

And while in Huntsville, city officials there say the economic impact from the All-Star Sports Week was around $1.5 million per year, new money generated from parents, grandparents and friends coming to town, numbering in the thousands.

"Basically, it's coming back home," said Bailey.

One big reason why AHSAA and Mayor Todd Strange are thrilled to have it back in Montgomery, "We'll have baseball at Riverwalk Stadium and/or Paterson Field.. softball at Lagoon.. football at Cramton Bowl and basketball at ASU," said Mayor Strange.

Sports Week is so much more than fun and games. "We have week long coaching involving 100 clinicians. We've had speakers like Nick Saban, Tommy Tuberville and Urban Myer," said Bailey.

Athletic association officials say it made more sense to bring it back to Montgomery because the city is centrally located, better suited geographically for families who travel from other parts of the state.

The deal with Montgomery is a 5-year contract. The games begin in July in 2011, and once the games begin, Montgomery leaders expect an economic impact of around $1.7 million with about half of that amount in sales tax revenues.

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