The Match Game

Terry sends his greetings from the US Sports Congress, where his dance card is already filled.  He has some auspicious meetings, and wants us to know the hot prospects he will be courting while at the conference.  They run the gamut, including US Olympic qualifiers, collegiate governing bodies, AAU events, sports tours, and even media representatives.

Here they are, in no particular order:

US Olympic Committee, Extreme Volleyball, USA Track & Field, Swimming, Diving, Synchro, Wrestling, Judo, Weightlifting, Fencing and Badminton;

ESPN Rise, Youth Basketball and Golf.  Speed Stacking and Disc Golf.  And the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Terry is going to be very, very busy for the next few days, but he’ll come home with some important leads for members of TEAM Maryland throughout the state.

Making a List, Checking it Twice

I saw Terry before he took off on another treasure hunt. The US Sports Congress is the motherload of amateur sports conferences where rights-holders, governing bodies, corporate sponsors and event planners are assembled and matched for one-to-one face time.

To me, it sounds like a speed dating exercise or singles weekend at Grossinger’s, but it works very well for bonhomme Terry, master networker. Last year he came home with a ton of business cards, new best friends, and the lead that blossomed to fruition when Maryland landed the 2013 Mid Atlantic Youth Soccer Tournament.

I asked Terry who he had in his cross hairs this year and he confessed he hadn’t compiled his wish list yet with so many other things going on here in Maryland. Given the season, I could just imagine him thumbing through the catalogue late at night, eyeing the hottest prospects, most sparkling gems, and figuring which of TEAM Maryland’s good little boys and girls would like to find that in their stocking this year.

So while he’d rather be home with his family during the holiday season, Terry will instead be playing Santa in Sanibel, schmoozing with elves, shopping for the best deals and selling Maryland to eager buyers.

Terry Trolls for Treasure

While most of us are in the holiday swing (or planning our bowl-watching schedule) Terry is in the hunt for more sports events and tournaments to bring home to Maryland.

This week he is attending the invitation-only meeting of the US Sports Congress, which is an annual conclave of sports commissions, destinations, event rights-holders, facility managers and sports sponsors.  This is where associations and promoters go to shop for desirable venues.  Because registration is limited, the ratio of events to desinations is even, and Terry has already had some very productive meeting with governing bodies who are interested in Maryland facilities.

Terry will give us a better idea about potential events and activities we could be hosting when he returns.  We have every confidence he’ll bag the limit on this particular hunting trip.