While youth wrestlers from across the state are preparing to hit the mats this weekend at the Kansas Expocentre, Topekans are gearing up for everyone else who plans to come, too.
Those involved with the Kansas Kids Wrestling Championships expect it to bring more than 7,500 people to the capital city.
H.R. Cook, general manager of the Expocentre, said the importance of the event extends beyond the actual venue.
“It’s a really, really big deal, because it’s not only the Expo that hosts the event but the entire community,” Cook said.
From city officials to Visit Topeka Inc., to those in the restaurant and lodging industries, a lot of people in Topeka are preparing for the influx of out-of-town parents, aunts and uncles, siblings and grandparents who will be at Landon Arena on Saturday and Sunday to watch about 1,500 wrestlers compete.
The wrestling championships occur annually in March, drawing participants of varying ages and sizes from every district in the state.
Mayor Bill Bunten said the event allows people to get together in the capital city and take advantage of what Topeka has to offer.
“For us, it’s a weekend when people stay here, eat here and shop here,” Bunten said. “It’s a fun event, and economically, it brings a great number of people to our city.”
Olivia Simmons, president and chief executive officer of Visit Topeka, said the overall economic impact of the event is huge.
Simmons said a conservative estimate of the revenue garnered from the event is $1.47 million.
The wrestling championships are the second-largest event in terms of revenue behind NHRA drag racing at Heartland Park Topeka.
Dena Soden, director of sales for Capitol Plaza Hotel, 1717 S.W. Topeka Blvd, said the hotel is completely booked tonight and Saturday night.
Soden said the hotel typically sells out a year before the championships.
Topeka has hosted this event for more than 15 years, continuously outbidding other cities for the contract.
In 2009, Topeka outbid Salina, Hays, Hutchinson and Wichita to retain the event under the current three-year contract, which expires in 2012.
The bidding process for the next host city will begin in the fall. Next March could be the last year the event is in Topeka as the competition gets tougher with new, larger arenas popping up across the state.
But Cook said it is because of the open arms of the citizens, not the arena, that Topeka has been able to retain this event for so long.
Simmons agrees.
“It’s that hospitality and that personal touch that you can’t put a price tag on,” Simmons said. “And that’s what we need from our community to help bring this event back year after year.”
Weigh-in for the wrestlers starts this evening. The opening ceremony and competitions commence Saturday morning.
Angelique McNaughton 