Rock Hill was a big textile town in the 1970s. But when that industry started to go away, the city began to look for ways to diversify and to revitalize its economy. It found the answer in amateur sports. Beginning with baseball and softball, the city has built facilities that have attracted teams from across the country and around the world for sports such as lacrosse, soccer, tennis, cycling and more.
John Taylor, Rock Hill’s director of parks, recreation and tourism, says sports tourism had an economic impact of $21.5 million on the city in 2015. Taylor and PRT Operations Supervisor Mark Sexton say Rock Hill will host the BMX world championship this year, which they expect to add another $13 million to the economy. In addition, they’re looking forward to the building of a new indoor sports complex that they say could attract at least 52 types of events, from gymnastics to volleyball to competitions as unusual as beard-growing contests.
