Orlando Sports Boosters Aim for Olympic-Class Events
By Ed Hula
Results of the U.S. Olympic Marathon trials in Orlando Feb. 3 will send six runners to Paris. The Olympic event is set for August 11, the penultimate day of the 2024 Games.
There were joyful winners — but they weren’t just the athletes. Organizers are buzzing about the success of the event from the host point of view.
“We could not be more pleased with the outcome of the event. Orlando delivered a fun, safe, and secure event with incredible engagement from fans, athletes, officials, and all involved,” says Jason Siegel, CEO of GO Sport, the Greater Orlando Sports Commission. GO Sport has the job of bringing major sports events to the central Florida city.
Athletes say they also were pleased, praising the organization as well as the tens of thousands of spectators spread across the course. Organizers say 100,000 watched the race from the sidelines and grandstand seating at the start and finish line.
Women’s division winner Fiona O’Keefe said the cheers were “absurdly loud in the city center and it was full of support the whole way.”
“It’s been great. It was a beautiful day, nice wind, not too breezy,” says second place finisher Clayton Young. He visited Orlando three times to prepare for the race but this time came with family. He says Orlando’s theme parks and attractions give them something to do while he readied to run
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“It takes the pressure off,” he says.
Siegel says the smooth running of the race was due in large part to the work of some 1400 volunteers.
“We have an incredible team who took 281,998 steps on Saturday, which works out to around 141 miles (or 5.38 full marathons) walked by our team to make this event the best it possibly could be. We couldn’t be prouder of the effort put forward by everyone,” Siegel says.
Siegel says the success of the trials means an economic boost for the region.
“For us, success is measured by the positive economic impact on our city, broadcast metrics on NBC and Peacock, ensuring the event was enjoyable for fans and our community, and creating a rise in tourism income during a non-peak travel season,” Siegel says.
“Local Orlando businesses were extremely pleased with the event as it helped bring in new customers and boost the economy, so we appreciate the positive feedback we’ve received from them so far,” he says.
Speaking on public radio station WMFE, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer estimates the knock on effect of the event was $15 million.
“We showed off the city in a remarkable manner,” Dyer said on the Feb. 8 edition of the program Engage, noting that the marathon trials were followed the next day by the Pro Bowl of the NFL. That game with top NFL stars playing flag football, a new sport for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 style, attracted nearly 60,000 spectators to Camping World Stadium, just outside the center of Orlando.
“We’ve become known as the premier sports destination in the country,” Dyer boasts. He says this is the fifth time Orlando has hosted the Pro Bowl. He says while not official, Orlando has become the home of the US men’s soccer team by playing many of its international matches in the city’s soccer stadium.
“We can host anything the world can bring us in terms of sports,” he says about the facilities available in Orlando and the surrounding Central Florida region. Facilities include ESPN’s Wide World of Sports as well as a sprawling convention center that plays host every year to thousands of young volleyball players competing for national championships. There will be four NCAA championships in May that GO Sport landed for Orlando.
Not everything goes Orlando’s way. It did not win a bid to be one of the US cities hosting matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The event will be held in Mexico, Canada and the U.S.
“We put forward a very aggressive bid,” Siegel says. “The field was obviously very competitive, and we were proud of our efforts and still are,” he continued, saying there are plenty of other events to seek.
“As we saw with the Marathon Trials, Olympic-style events are so exciting and just a blast to host. We are in constant communication with U.S. Olympic National Governing Bodies, and we’d love to bring more Olympic events to Orlando and celebrate our country’s best athletes,” Siegel says.
With the coming of Los Angeles as the host for the 2028 Summer Olympics, Orlando is certain to be in the marketplace for training sites for athletes from the U.S. and abroad. Expect Orlando and the Pro Bowl to become one of the signposts on the way to LA 28, the NFL heavily promoting the Olympic connection to the Games.
“Continuing to bring world-class events to Orlando is a long-term goal for us, and by successfully hosting an event of this capacity, we feel like we have positioned ourselves well for landing future events,” Siegel said.