Oct. 8, 2012 DemocratandChronicle.com, Written by James Johnson Staff writer – There is a belief that enough passion exists to revive the summer Empire State Games. More importantly, organizers of the next scheduled Empire State Games say that the financial means to bring back the state’s Olympic-style competition also exists.
The Empire State Sports Foundation announced Thursday that everything is “on target’’ for the summer event’s return to Rochester with a new name, July 24-28.
The challenge is to turn the Hugh L. Carey Empire State Games, named after the late governor who established the competitions in 1978, into an annual event again.
There are more summer college recruiting showcases, camps, tournaments and travel teams than ever to compete with for athletes participation and sponsorship dollars.
A revival could be something that generates interest around the state, as past summer Empire State Games were said to have an economic impact of $8 million to $12 million on the region of the host cities. “They seem to be off to a great start,” State Senator Joseph Robach said. “It’s a good product, it’s something that a lot of people and companies want to be a part of.”
The Empire State Sports Foundation, a not for profit organization that now runs the summer games, has some help when it comes to promotion.
United States Olympic soccer star Abby Wambach, a Pittsford native, and New Jersey Devils winger Stephen Gionta are honorary members of the Empire State Sports Foundation’s board of governors. Gionta, a Greece native who reached the Stanley Cup finals with the Devils last spring, and Wambach played in the summer Empire State Games while in high school.
Ice hockey was part of the summer Empire State Games when Gionta, then a student at Aquinas, skated with the Western Region teams of Rochester- and Buffalo-area players in 1999 and 2000.
Gionta joked during Thursday’s announcement about the revived summer games that he had a good view from the bench when the team rallied to win a gold medal 12 years ago in Binghamton.
“The opportunity is something I wanted to jump on, to help in any way,” Gionta said. “It’s something I still remember to this day. The competition level was high.
“I look at some of the players and say ‘Wow, they were pretty good.’ You are talking about the best in the state. I didn’t realize how much it helped me then, because I was so young. I was 12-13 years old and I still remember the whole thing.”
High school-aged athletes and adults, about 5,500 to 6,000 state residents, would compete under one of six regional banners. They were housed and fed at area colleges, which used the experience to promote their schools to families and recruit athletes.
Wambach and Gionta are not the only ones who went on to become stars and professionals or reach the Olympics. Mike Tyson boxed, Hall of Famer Chris Mullin played basketball and former Webster resident Kara Lynn Joyce swam in the summer Empire State Games.
Sports organizations viewed the ESG events as a chance to show off their games to the public or stage championship and step-ladder competitions. Media coverage from around the state was all but guaranteed, given that regional teams were made up of hundreds of athletes and coaches.
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, which ran the Empire State Games, claimed that other states followed the model. Cities and regions in this state competed to host the summer Empire State Games.
The state ran the games from the first edition in 1978 until three years ago when budget cuts took away $2.7 million in funding.Organizers secured sponsorship, and a pay-to-play model for athletes was used to revive the games in Buffalo and Niagara Falls during 2010. The comeback was brief.
Rochester was scheduled to host the following year, but a lack of sponsorship led to the current suspension. Former Monroe County Sports Commission member Scott Bell is among those who vowed to bring back the summer Empire State Games, which have taken place in the Rochester-area three times
The plan is for the next version to include 30 sports in the scholastic or high school-aged division, including softball. Beach volleyball and lacrosse are on the list of 32 sports for an open division that now has age brackets for former master-level athletes.
Athletes will have to pay to play, $40 in the scholastic division, $50 in the open.
The College at Brockport, Monroe Community College, Roberts Wesleyan, and State University College at Geneseo were announced as event venues.