CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — In Clarksville, sporting events throughout May 2024 are expected to bring in millions of dollars in economic impact for the city.
The six athletic events across Montgomery County this month are anticipated to attract over 13,000 people for an estimated visitor spending of $7.1 million.
“It's probably one of our larger months in general than even years past because we have added two or three events in May,” said Blake Monroe, Director of Sports Tourism for Visit Clarksville.
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The City of Clarksville kicked off the month with the Ducks Unlimited Eastern Continental Shoot. In the city’s first time hosting the competition, it brought in nearly 600 people from over 20 states.
"It was definitely cool to have such a brand come in and compete in Clarksville and we're hoping to have it back again next year,” Monroe said.
A few days after, Clarksville played host to one of its largest sporting events of the year—the Clarksville Soccer Club’s Queen City Cup. Over 7,000 athletes and spectators were a part of this year’s edition of the tournament which generated over $3.5 million in visitor spending. Out of the 122 teams that competed, 97 were out of state.
Monroe said it’s clear that more people are seeing Clarksville as an ideal location for sporting events.
“I think a lot of people forget that Clarksville is the fifth largest city in the state, and I think because of that we've seen this development happen through the [Nashville] Predators’ Investment in F&M Bank Arena, and the fact that we're becoming a hockey town in a way, which is really cool. We're definitely very fortunate to have a record-setting number of hockey tournaments for the Clarksville area, and we're going to be excited to see how we can compare that to next year because of the new arena.”
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There are two remaining sporting events in Clarksville this month. On May 25, the Clarksville Rotary Annual Metric ride will take place. The National Horseshoe Pitching Association’s Tommy Wahl Memorial Open will be May 25 - 26 at Civitan Park.
In fiscal year 2023 - 2024, Clarksville has hosted over 30 sporting events that saw over 40,000 people and an estimated visitor spending of over $19 million. Athletes participating in hockey, softball, basketball, cross country, soccer, gymnastics, football, dance, and fishing have competed at facilities across Montgomery County in the last year.
“I think our partnerships and facility availability have helped grow this department,” Monroe said. “We've just been very fortunate to have partners who want to continue to come back to Clarksville to have these events.”
For more information, you can go to Visit Clarksville's website.