The hotel industry is not just strong, it's expanding, according to a recent industry report. Sports tourism is folding into that growth as well, something that hospitality professionals are becoming aware of, and using to their advantage. Chief among the beneficiaries: extended-stay and limited-service properties, a mainstay of sports events.

With tennis and pickleball, the gains that started in 2020 have just kept going, with both sports popular at all levels and all ages (even pickleball, in which the estimated player age keeps trending downward). Expect even more growth as we see an uptick in the construction and renovation of great facilities nationwide. Here are just a few.

Was the Formula 1 event in Vegas a photo finish or a flaming wreck? While the race was projected to have a $1.2 billion economic impact, it was not without its share of problems, many typical of a first-time event. We already know, for example, that F1 was forced to pump the brakes on its demands on Las Vegas in exchange for hosting an event there.

The future of speedskating, a sport that many people probably don't think about outside of the Olympics, can be found in Milwaukee. That's the word from five-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist speedskater Bonnie Blair and Dave Cruikshank, the four-time U.S. Olympic speedskater and owner of a performance center for hockey players in the Brew City.

Everything is bigger in Texas and that includes the importance of water safety. The Corpus Christi Independent School District is teaching students the importance of swimming safety in the Coastal Bend by starting a program to teach all third graders how to swim. That's 34 schools in all, and advocacy groups are thrilled. Will other states join in?

Powerful and innovative. Those are two words that we have long associated with this industry. And in previous years, we have learned two more: Determined and resourceful. It takes all four of these qualities to bring events to life. This year's honorees, our 2023 Champions in Economic Impact in Sports Tourism, have lived up to all those superlatives.