Waving the Maryland Flag

Terry sends his greetings from Indianapolis, where he is attending a meeting of the National Association of Sports Commissions.  Loath as we are to admit it, Indianapolis is where it is happening for many youth, amateur and collegiate sports activities because so many are headquartered there.  That makes it a prime location for sports commission representatives to assemble.  Indianapolis also has one of the oldest and best sports commissions, responsible for attracting the NCAA headquarters and many of their marquee events. 

A few years ago, their chairman came to Baltimore to talk to the Camden Yards Sports Commission about the importance of expanding their mission.  You can see how we took that message to heart with the creation of the Maryland Office of Sports Marketing.

Terry has already met with representatives from the NCAA as well as USA swim, dive, track, and gymnastic teams.  These are the folks we are interested in luring to Maryland for their regional or championship events.

In Sports Commission business, Terry reports there was a lot of discussion among the large market segment representatives about their mutual interests -- financial concerns in a challenging market, assembling a winning World Cup bid, forming partnerships with the private sector, etc.

Terry (who is a board member of the Association) addressed his colleagues on the opportunities and challenges he faces.  The Maryland Office of Sports Marketing is one of the few state organizations.  Most are either large cities or georgraphic regions. 

Maryland has unique assets in its multitude of natural resources, prime location near the nation's capital, large market major league facilities, and compact size.  The challenge is to capitalize on Maryland's opportunities by leveraging all the jurisdictions with the Office of Sports Marketing.  (We're good, but we can't do it without our teammates.)  We also need to engage the private sector and media as partners in marketing our product.

Terry wants everyone to know how much attention Maryland is getting for the facilities and venues we have and the opportunities we offer.  We are recognized (and envied) for our assets and our marketing plan.