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Riley announces 2008 as Year of Alabama Sports Governor Bob Riley announced today the state is celebrating achievements in sports in 2008 by spotlighting legendary heroes, sports museums and athletic events. The Year of Alabama Sports is the fifth in a series of award-winning campaigns designed to lure tourists to various destinations. A goal of the $2 million campaign is boosting attendance at the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, the Paul Bryant Museum in Tuscaloosa, and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame at the Talladega Superspeedway, as well as lesser-known destinations such as Rickwood Field, the Jesse Owens Museum and Park in Lawrence County and the U.S. Sports Academy in Daphne. The promotion should increase play along the state's famous Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail and attendance at the post-season Senior Bowl and GMAC bowl games in Mobile and the Papa John's game in Birmingham, he said. "No other state can match the number of great sports legends from this state," Governor Riley said, noting that when ESPN selected the top 15 athletes of the 20th century, five were from Alabama: Jesse Owens, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Joe Louis and Carl Lewis. Nine of the top 100 hailed from the state. Travel has become a nearly $10 billion industry in Alabama, the governor said. "NASCAR fans around the world know that racing at Talladega is the most competitive on the circuit. The April and October races are the two biggest tourism events each year in the state," he said, adding that televised events at the Barber Road track near Leeds and the SEC Baseball Championship in Hoover draw positive attention to the state. Although the state is known for its high school and college football traditions, minorleague baseball teams are prospering. The Huntsville Stars, the Birmingham Barons, the Montgomery Biscuits and the Mobile BayBears are among the most successful in the Southern League, Governor Riley said. The state tourism department will utilize magazine ads, television commercials, posters, public relations as well as the agency's own publications to spread the message, said state tourism director Lee Sentell. Birmingham ad agency Luckie & Company will produce commercials highlighting the Golf Trail, sports museums and Alabama Speedweek to air in approximately 60 TV markets during the SEC Basketball Tournament in Atlanta. The Montgomery-based Raycom, affiliated with the Retirement Systems of Alabama, recently bought the company that owned the rights to televise the tournament. For four years, Alabama has had exclusive rights during the tournament to air tourism commercials aimed at families from Texas to Maryland who are planning summer vacations, Sentell said.
A special section on the tourism agency's Web site www.alabama.travel will feature details on the yearlong campaign.
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