NEWS RELEASE – January 26, 2022
Greensboro, North Carolina: Greensboro has joined Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and Cary as host communities for North Carolina’s bid for the 2027 Summer World University Games. The World University Games are the planet’s largest event for student athletes and the world’s second-largest global Olympic sports event, behind only the Summer Olympic Games.
“We are delighted that Greensboro has become a key partner in North Carolina’s bid for the Summer World University Games,” said Hill Carrow, Chair & CEO of the North Carolina Bid Committee, “Greensboro has some of the very best sports venues in our state, and the city’s volunteers and event expertise are on par with any top tier sports city in our country. Combining Greensboro with our Triangle municipalities makes for an extremely strong, world-class host city team.”
Greensboro has a strong history of hosting major sports events, including the NCAA Final Four Men’s Basketball Championships, the Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments, the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, and the NCAA D-I Men’s and Women’s Swimming Championships. Greensboro has also hosted national and international championships in other sports of the World University Games including Diving, Gymnastics, Table Tennis, and Water Polo, among others. Greensboro’s multi-sport experience includes the AAU Junior Olympic Games, U.S. Olympic Festival, State Games of North Carolina, and the USA Masters Games.
The World University Games would provide Greensboro the opportunity to take its multi-sport hosting experience to the next level. The Games typically include over 150 countries and an official delegation of athletes, coaches, and support staff totaling more than 10,000. With 19 sports being conducted at as many as 60 different venues, the Games can encompass more than 250 individual sports competitions. Up to 1,500 members of the national and international media attend, and the Games are broadcast worldwide to an audience of over 400 million. Independent third-party studies have shown the significant local economic impacts of the event to range from $150 million to over $370 million. North Carolina has proposed the dates of Tuesday, July 13 through Sunday, July 25, 2027, as the preferred dates for hosting the Games.
With the city’s proven track record in recruiting and hosting major sports events, Greensboro has come to be known as “Tournament Town.” Among Greensboro’s championship venues are the Greensboro Coliseum Complex, Greensboro Aquatic Center, Truist Stadium and Irwin Belk Track, First National Bank Field, Bryan Park at BB&T Soccer Complex, and Sedgefield Country Club, home of The Wyndham Championship. Greensboro is also a significant college town with 6 colleges and universities including the University of North Carolina Greensboro, N.C. A & T State University, Guilford College, Greensboro College, Bennett College, and Guilford Technical Community College.
Although the event plan has not yet been finalized for the bid, Greensboro could be in position to be designated as potential host for some of the more high-profile sports competitions of the Games including Swimming, Diving, Gymnastics, and Track & Field, among others. In addition, Greensboro’s two largest universities, UNC Greensboro and NC A & T could play major roles in supporting athlete housing and track & field competition respectively. The World University Games also encompass a significant cultural program as well as an important educational program, so additional areas of the city and county could be showcased if North Carolina is selected to host the Games when that announcement is made in early October of this year. Currently the bid from the United States with North Carolina as host partner is in contention with a bid from South Korea (centered in the ChungCheong region) for the 2027 Games.
This is not the first time that Greensboro and the Triangle area have teamed up to host a major Olympic sports event. The 1987 U.S. Olympic Festival, an event of the U.S. Olympic Committee, which featured 34 sports and is often referred to as “America’s Olympics,” was hosted by Greensboro, Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and Cary. Of the 18 years that U.S. Olympic Festivals were held in the United States, the 1987 event was rated the best by U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee executives. Interestingly, 2027 will mark the 40th Anniversary of the 1987 U.S. Olympic Festival.
About the North Carolina Bid Committee: Centered in the heart of North Carolina, the North Carolina Bid Committee is comprised of individuals who are helping with, supporting, and leading an initiative to recruit and host the 2027 Summer World University Games in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill-Cary-Greensboro region of North Carolina. The NCBC is affiliated with, and supported by, the Triangle Sports Commission, which serves Wake, Durham, and Orange Counties in North Carolina. The primary goals of the NCBC are to host one of the best World University Games ever, with a great participant experience being the primary barometer; and to showcase North Carolina, and the communities and universities that comprise its central region, to the world. North Carolina’s bid is currently sponsored by the Angus Barn, Atlantic Tire & Service, Capitol Broadcasting Company, Cary Chamber of Commerce, Contender eSports, Duke Energy, Duke Health, Edge Printed Products, Hummingbird Creative Group, Martin Marietta, McDonald York Building Company, North Carolina FC & the NC Courage, PNC Bank, Raleigh Orthopaedic, Sports & Properties, Inc., Stewart, Triangle Badminton & Table Tennis, Triangle Sports Commission, UNC Health, Wake Competition Center, WakeMed, Wasserman, and York Properties, Inc. For more information on the North Carolina Bid Committee or to make a donation to support the bid, visit www.ncwug2027bid.com.
About the Summer World University Games: The Summer World University Games are the world’s largest event for student athletes, ages 18-25. The rightsholder for the Games is the International University Sports Federation (FISU), based in Lausanne, Switzerland. The U.S. member of FISU is the United States International University Sports Federation (USIUSF), located in Orlando, Florida. The World University Games got their formal start with the 1959 Games in Torino, Italy, where 985 athletes from 45 countries competed in 7 sports during a 12-day period. In more recent times, Taipei 2017 for example, 7,377 athletes from 134 countries competed over 13 days in 275 competitive events in 22 sports at 60 venues where 1,957 medals were awarded. The 15 required sports of the Summer World University Games are Archery, Artistic Gymnastics, Athletics (Track & Field), Badminton, Basketball, Diving, Fencing, Judo, Rhythmic Gymnastics, Swimming, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Tennis, Volleyball, and Water Polo. For its bid for the 2027 WUG, the NCBC has proposed Baseball, Rugby 7s, Soccer, and Softball as the “local option” sports. For more information about the World University Games, FISU, and World University Championships, visit www.fisu.net.