One of three major events in Emporia over the next two months is currently underway at Emporia State University’s Welch Stadium, the NCAA Division II National Track and Field Championships.
The tournament, which is being held at Emporia for the second time in three years, is bringing far more than just the top-tier athletes in the country to our community, as Emporia Main Street Director Casey Woods noted in an interview with KVOE News Thursday. Woods says the tournament will bring an influx of revenue to the community, which is in the midst of a “bridge period” following the end of the academic year.
Visit Emporia Director Matt Fowler says that in addition to the economic boost the tournament will bring to Emporia in the short term, hosting such large-scale events can and often do have long-term financial effects well into the future, noting the importance of making a “good first impression” in the hopes of generating long-term visitors.
Woods also states that the event is a big win for the community at a time when the economy has taken several hard hits over the last year.
Fowler also noted that this is just the start of what is likely to be a very prosperous month-long injection of revenue and visitors to the community, with Unbound Gravel coming up next week in addition to an anticipated surge of traffic passing through over the next month plus for the FIFA World Cup.
The NCAA Track and Field Championships will run now through Saturday. Emporia State Associate Athletic Director and Head of Media Relations Don Weast will join KVOE’s Morning Show at 6:45 am Friday to preview day two of the tournament.
