Grants to support AAU Diving National Championships, State Wars National Championship and Ohio Lacrosse Festival
Team Indiana has awarded three grants to sports destination partners throughout the state. Hamilton County Sports Authority, Visit Fort Wayne and Visit South Bend Mishawaka are among the partners to be awarded the grants with each planning to use the grants to host events ranging from late July to early August.
The grants will support operations surrounding the AAU Diving National Championships in Noblesville, State Wars National Championship in Fort Wayne, and The Ohio Lacrosse Festival in South Bend. Each event was relocated due to COVID-19 restrictions in their original locations. Luckily, hosting these events in Indiana will have a positive economic impact on the communities and the entire state.
“The events supported by Team Indiana Grants benefit our communities by generating significant economic impact through visitor spending,” said Shannon Sullivan, director of Statewide Initiatives and Events at Indiana Sports Corp. “Fans and participants who attend sporting events stay in hotels, eat at restaurants, and visit attractions in our Team Indiana communities. In 2019 alone, Team Indiana Grants supported 11 events with a total economic impact of nearly $20 million.”
Youth sports events beginning to rebound
Grant funding is provided by the Indiana Destination Development Corporation and administered by Indiana Sports Corp. A grant committee with statewide representation controls all grant awards, which are meant to assist communities in growing valuable sporting events and attracting new/more business to Indiana.
Pete Nelson, Team Indiana Grant Committee chairman and Sports Sales Manager at Visit Bloomington said, “COVID-19 has impacted many industries over the last few months, and tourism has been one of the hardest hit. We have been lucky to see youth sporting events begin to rebound, and Indiana has seen an uptick in events looking to relocate to our state, thanks to our central location, facilities, and health orders structured to help prevent the spread of the virus at tournaments. The Team Indiana Grant Program offers much needed support to communities, especially as they have the opportunity to host new events that will have a tremendous positive impact on their community.”
Grants available for tourism
Team Indiana Grants are available for tourism or sports-related organizations hosting events in Indiana. The grant program guidelines and application, as well as the full list of recently awarded grants can be found at Team-IND.org.
About Indiana Sports Corp
Founded in 1979 as the nation’s first sports commission, Indiana Sports Corp is a not-for-profit organization focused on bringing premier sporting events to Indiana to drive economic vitality, facilitate a vibrant community with civic pride and garner positive media attention. Because of this, Indiana Sports Corp is able to provide positive, sports-related opportunities for youth in the community. For more information, please visit IndianaSportsCorp.org.
