National Association of Sports Commissions Names Next Host Cities for Symposiums

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK--(Marketwired - Apr 10, 2014) -  The National Association of Sports Commissions (NASC), the governing body of the $8.7 billion sports events industry, celebrated record attendance for its annual symposium held here last week.

Some 809 attendees, including 206 first-timers, participated in last week's NASC Symposium to elect new NASC leadership, honor members with industry awards and participate in dozens of continuing education programs led by industry leadership.

Also, during the event the NASC Sports Legacy Fund raised $14,000 to benefit Oklahoma Cleats for Kids, an Oklahoma City-based organization that collects, recycles and distributes new and gently used athletic shoes and equipment to kids in need.

NASC Selects Future Host Cities for 2016, 2017
The NASC announced future locations for its annual meeting: Grand Rapids, Michigan will be the host in 2016 and Sacramento, California was named the 2017 host city. Previously announced, Milwaukee will host the 2015 NASC Symposium from April 27-30.

"We feel we have an exciting lineup of cities that will be the hosts for our Symposiums," said Don Schumacher, executive director of the NASC. "With our return to Milwaukee in 2015, we'll visit some of our most dynamic sports cities."

NEW NASC Leadership Elected
New NASC board leadership was also announced, including Kevin Smith, CSEE, the director of the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Sports Commission, as the new chair of NASC.

Additional officers include: Vice Chair/Chair Elect, Greg Ayers, CSEE, president & CEO, Discover Kalamazoo; Treasurer, Ralph Morton, CSEE, executive director, Seattle Sports Commission; Secretary, Mike Anderson, CSEE, director of sports, Visit Charlotte; and Immediate Past Chair, Terry Hasseltine, CSEE, executive director, Maryland Office of Sports.

About the National Association of Sports Commissions
As the only trade association for the sports tourism industry, the National Association of Sports Commissions (NASC) is the most trusted resource for sports commissions, convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs), and sports event owners. The NASC is committed to the success of nearly 650 member organizations and 1,600 sports event professionals.