CONTACT:
Molly Belmont, Director of Marketing
Albany County Convention & Visitors Bureau
Phone: 518-434-1217 x 203
Email: mbelmont@albany.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 5, 2018


Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships to be held in Albany in 2020 – worth $4.1M
US Figure Skating selects Albany for the 2020 Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships

 

ALBANY, NY – U.S. Figure Skating announced today that it will hold its Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships in Albany in 2020, generating an estimated $4.1 million in direct spending. The event will be hosted by the Skyliners Synchronized Skating Team and the Skating Club of New York.

This regional qualifying event will take place at the recently refurbished Times Union Center, January 15 – 19, 2020. The event, which brings together synchronized skating teams from the Eastern region, including New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, as well as New England, the mid-Atlantic states and the Southeastern United States, is expected to create demand for 10,000 hotel rooms in Albany County, making this one of the largest events in recent history.

In fact, demand is so large that guests are booking rooms at 25 different hotels in the county.

“This event is a huge coup for Albany County,” says Jill Delaney, President and CEO of Discover Albany.  “Discover Albany worked with the Skyliners Synchronized Skating Team and Skating Club of New York to identify this opportunity and made a successful case for Albany, bringing $4.1 million in direct spending to our county. Our staff helped prepare the bid for this big piece of business and coordinated venues and hotel participation so that everyone was in perfect formation. This was a big undertaking and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our partners.”

“Being chosen to host Easterns is a great honor and important milestone for our team, which has grown into one of the largest synchronized skating organizations in the world,” said Skyliners Synchronized Skating Team President Lawrence Cooke. 

“It’s an amazing opportunity for Skyliners to host this important synchronized skating event,” said Josh Babb, Skyliners Director of Synchronized Skating. “We want to thank everyone that helped in the successful bid process, including the Skating Club of New York, Discover Albany and the Times Union Arena.”

“In considering a number of different locations to host the 2020 Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships, Albany seemed perfect,” said Cooke. “Albany offered ease of access by air, car and rail, a fabulously refurbished host facility in the Times Union Center, conveniently located hotel accommodations and restaurants in close proximity to the main venue, fun off-ice activities, and a great ally in the responsiveness and assistance of Discover Albany.”

Today, there are 600 synchronized skating teams in the U.S. Teams consist of 8-24 skaters who perform together. Their performance is judged by teamwork, speed, intricate formations, and synchronized step sequences. Skyliners Synchronized Skating Team, which will host the event alongside The Skating Club of New York, was founded in 2001 and has grown to be one of the top synchronized skating organizations in the country, winning 12 National Championships, 25 Eastern Championships, and placing 2nd at Junior Worlds in 2018, the world’s first synchronized skating medal for a Team USA Junior.

According to the Destinations International (DI) Event Impact Calculator, a tool that measures the economic value of an event and calculates its return to local taxes, the Eastern Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships will account for:

  • 10,000 total room nights at area hotels throughout Albany County
  • $4,118,323 in direct spending at hotels, the Times Union Center, etc.
  • $327,182 in local tax revenue for Albany County
     

About Discover Albany:
The Albany County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc. was established in 1976 to promote the civic and commercial progress of the community through increased development of conventions and tourism. Today, we’re known as Discover Albany and represent more than 300 member-businesses. Each year, we assist with hundreds of regional meetings. Discover Albany also operates the Discover Albany Visitors Center, Henry Hudson Planetarium, and the Albany International Airport Information Center. For more information, call 518-434-1217 or 800-258-3582 or visit www.albany.org.