As of this date, there are only a little over 7 months to go until the decision by the International University Sports Federation (FISU), international governing body for university sports, as to the host of the 2027 World University Games. If you are new to this monthly news update, we welcome you and hope you enjoy receiving the latest information on the status of North Carolina’s bid for the ’27 Games. Feel free to catch up on prior updates on the News tab of our website at www.ncwug2027bid.com.
Finalist Uplift
Since the big announcement by FISU at the beginning of this month that the competition for the 2027 World University Games was now down to North Carolina vs. South Korea, traditional media and social media have been very active in their enthusiasm for, and coverage of, that announcement. North Carolina news outlets that have featured the story have included WRAL-TV and Fox50 in Raleigh, WILM-TV in Wilmington, WGHP-TV Fox8 in High Point, WFMY News2 in Greensboro, and both the Triad Business Journal and Triangle Business Journal. National and international publications covering the news have included Inside the Games (London, England), SwimSwam (Dallas, TX), The Sports Examiner (Los Angeles, CA), and SportsTravel Magazine (also Los Angeles). In addition, social media Finalist news across LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter has received thousands of views, comments, likes, and/or new followers. Our thanks go to these members of the media who recognized the importance and impact of the Finalist milestone, and are working hard to get the word out as widely as possible to the general public.
NC’s Bid Already Paying Dividends
In a joint news release from USA Badminton and our NC Bid Committee last week, USA Badminton announced that the 2022 USA Badminton Collegiate National Championships would be held March 25-27 at Triangle Badminton & Table Tennis in Morrisville, NC, a North Carolina WUG Bid Sponsor and potential host venue for the World University Games. Linda French, USA Badminton CEO said, “We are looking forward to staging our top collegiate event in North Carolina at Triangle Badminton & Table Tennis. We chose the location carefully and look forward to holding more prestigious events at this venue. We are mindful that North Carolina is in the final phase of a bid to land the 2027 World University Games and these championships can help support that initiative.”
The 2022 USA Badminton Collegiate National Championships will consist of individual competition in Women’s Singles, Men’s Singles, Women’s Doubles, Men’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. Importantly, the event will also serve as the Selection Event for the USA Collegiate National Team to compete in the 2022 World University Games in Chengdu, China, June 26 to July 7, 2022. USA Badminton intends to select a team to compete in Chengdu consisting of 6 women and 6 men. The governing body expects the winners of each event to be selected for the World University Games team.
“It’s fantastic to see North Carolina’s World University Games bid already paying dividends for the region,” said Hill Carrow, Chairman & CEO of North Carolina’s Bid Committee for the World University Games. “We cannot thank Linda French and the leadership of USA Badminton enough for choosing the Triangle for a Championship event that also promotes our efforts to land the world’s top event for collegiate athletes.”
Welcome New Sponsors
We are excited to welcome three new sponsors to our Bid Sponsor Team: Transcend Commercial, Tri Properties, and Longleaf Law Partners. Transcend Commercial is a boutique commercial real estate advisory firm located in Chapel Hill. Tri Properties, part of the NAI international network of commercial real estate service providers, is headquartered in Durham. Longleaf Law Partners is a boutique law firm located in Raleigh focused on commercial real estate law. Each of these new sponsors sees the potential major positive impacts on the regional market of a World University Games hosted in central North Carolina, particularly when one considers the almost 5-year global marketing campaign for the area that would precede the Games. We very much thank them for their generous support!
NC WUG Alumni Committee Launches
Former Southern Cal Swimming standout and national champion, Trent Staley, and former UNC Chapel Hill and NCAA Swimming Champion, Sue Walsh, both of Charlotte, have agreed to assist in gettting the North Carolina World University Games Alumni Committee out of the blocks. More than 120 North Carolina-connected WUG alums, including Trent and Sue, have been identified by the bid staff thus far, including such notables as Coaches Mike Kryzewski of Duke and Roy Williams and Hubert Davis of UNC, among others. We have posted a number of interviews with WUG alums on our YouTube channel linked HERE, with more to come. Thank you, Trent and Sue for taking leadership roles, and we look forward to the growth and engagement of the NC WUG Alumni Committee.
News Briefs
NC Bid Committee member, Smedes York, provided an update on North Carolina’s World University Games Bid to the Research Triangle Foundation Board of Directors at the Board’s February meeting. The Foundation Board includes the Chancellors or Presidents of the region’s four largest universities including Chancellor Johnson Akinleye of NC Central University, Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz of UNC Chapel Hill, Chancellor Randy Woodson of NC State University, and Vincent Price, President of Duke University.
Hill Carrow, Chair & CEO of the NC Bid Committee, traveled to Charlotte last week to the offices of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The NJCAA, which had been located in Colorado Springs since the 1980’s moved cross country and opened its new offices in North Carolina across from UNC Charlotte in January of 2019. While there, Hill visited with NJCAA President & CEO, Chris Parker; Jeff White, VP for Legal, Diversity, IT, and Resources; and Molly Simons, VP of Championships, Governance and Memberships. All three are members of the Board of Directors of the U.S. International University Sports Federation (USIUSF) which is the lead entity for the United States bid for the 2027 World University Games, with North Carolina serving as the USIUSF’s Host City Partner.
Support the Bid
You can support the bid in a number of ways: corporate sponsorship, individual contribution, volunteering, or purchasing bid merchandise. (Bid apparel could make an attractive gift. Just click here.) We encourage you to visit our award-winning website at www.ncwug2027bid.com and join our team.
Sponsor Thank You’s
We cannot thank our sponsors enough for their strong belief in, and generous support of, North Carolina’s bid for the World University Games. We encourage you to patronize their businesses and give them your own personal thanks when you do.
Sponsors
