FD gets sports district listing again
Grant will support six events
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Fort Dodge became a fixture on the Iowa sports scene with the state cross country meet and the girls softball tournament.
But the community has also successfully hosted a growing number of other tournaments and sports camps.
State officials recently recognized that by once again designating Visit Fort Dodge as Regional Sports Authority District.
That designation gives Visit Fort Dodge $60,000 to support six tournaments. Five of those tournaments, including three to be held at the Pavilion in Corridor Plaza, will be new events in the community. The sixth event is returning to Fort Dodge after a roughly 10-year absence.
"Sports tourism is a vital component of our visitor economy," said Kerrie Kuiper, executive director of Visit Fort Dodge. "Our culinary attractions, hotels, retail businesses and especially our gas stations stand to see increased activity when these events are in town."
The money comes from the Iowa Tourism Office, which is part of the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
The money goes to Visit Fort Dodge which disburses it to tournament organizers after they submit invoices and attendance figures. Organizers of each event will provide a 50 percent match for the awarded funds.
Three volleyball tournaments will be supported with the funding. One of them will be hosted by Iowa Central Community College's new women's beach volleyball program. The other two will be youth volleyball tournaments held in the Pavilion at Corridor Plaza.
A new wrestling tournament will be held prior to the Iron Sharpens Iron wrestling camp held annually in Fort Dodge. The last Iron Sharpens Iron event drew 1,700 people from across the country, according to Kuiper.
"It's a pretty big event," she said.
The Battle of the Borders youth baseball tournament was last held at Harlan and Hazel Rogers Sports Complex in 2016, but it will be returning next year. Kuiper said it brings together teams from Iowa and Minnesota "to kind of battle for bragging rights."
A youth basketball tournament to be held in the Pavilion at Corridor Plaza will be the sixth event supported by the newly awarded grant.
This is the fifth year in a row that Visit Fort Dodge has been named a Regional Sports Authority District.