The recent success of the Australian Baseball Intermediate League Championships (AILC) in Mildura demonstrates the importance of attracting high-profile national sporting events to the region, and the positive impacts they have on the local economy, according to Councillor for Economic Development and Tourism Mark Eckel.
Mildura won the rights to host the 2019 AILC for four years, with the first event held last month from 17 – 21 June.
The championships saw nine teams from Western Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria compete for what is recognised as one of the biggest junior baseball development series titles in the country.
Cr Eckel said the event was a valuable and welcome addition to Sunraysia's annual events calendar.
"The majority of players competing in the championships were from outside the district and hadn't visited our region before, generating something in the region of $50,000 in accommodation bookings alone," he said.
"Many I spoke to during the championships, including representatives from Baseball Australia, were impressed by our region and want to come back for a return trip.
"As a general rule in the tourism sector, with single-purpose events held over a two to four-day period, visitors become enthused with a region and about 25 per cent return for another tourism experience.
"This demonstrates how important it is to bring significant events of this calibre to our region, particularly events like this which bring junior players and their families or supporters.
"I'd like to congratulate Baseball Australia, Baseball Victoria and our local Sunraysia Baseball Association and look forward to building on the success of this event in our region over the coming three years.
"I'd also like to thank our local community, particularly the business community, for embracing this event, which was evidenced by the positive reports I received from the visiting players and officials."
Cr Eckel said Council would continue to work closely with both Baseball Australia and the Sunraysia Baseball Association to make next year's event even better.
