With more Americans active than ever before, and with participation numbers higher than even 2019, the outlook is very good for the sports tourism industry. That's the takeaway from the recently published Sports & Fitness Industry Association's Topline Participation Report: Sports, Fitness and Leisure Activities. Here are more of the insights.

The face of golf just might have changed more in that past five years than it has in the past five decades. That's the news from the National Golf Foundation, which reports that more than one-quarter of green-grass golfers in the United States are girls, women or People of Color, segments that historically have been underrepresented in the sport.

With more athletes, more diversity of race formats, new athletes in the sport and more youth engagement, multisport (triathlon, paratriathlon and others) is hitting a good stride. USA Triathlon's 2024 Impact Report notes that the organization is still chasing its pre-pandemic numbers but signs of improvement (and new trends in racing) are everywhere.

March Madness may be grabbing all the headlines right about now but ice skating is always cool. US Figure Skating has an RFP for its Sectional High School Finals - Midwest, Pacific Coast & Eastern. You have between now and June 1 to submit a bid for the 2026 edition of the event. This is a prime opportunity to get into the ice event hosting game.

The difference between the sports facility that welcomes sports events and the one that languishes on the drawing board is all too often a matter of funding. Recently, four destinations made news with their approaches to getting those funds. The approaches couldn't be more different but they're all creative and interesting.

Swimming is contested at multiple levels, from youth to masters, from Olympic races to rec meets and from high school to college (and everywhere in between). The one commonality is the need for aquatic facilities with the capacity to host everything from dual meets to invitationals that feature hundreds of swimmers. These destinations are making waves.