Resource analysis represents an important first step in the development and management of sport tourism destinations. Different destinations offer specific sport tourism experiences because they are characterized by distinct sport and tourism resources. These resources may, within the tourism sphere, relate to tourism infrastructure, levels of service development, tourist attractions and information services. The sports resource may include sports venues such as stadia and arenas, training facilities, sport science resources, and sports medicine facilities (Maier and Weber, 1993). Standeven and De Knop (1999) recognize the considerable common interests that link the resources utilized by the sport and tourism industries.
An important point of differentiation exists between sport tourism resources that are built and those that are primarily nature-based. The resource base for sport tourism at many urban sport tourism destinations increasingly centres upon major stadium facilities that have in recent years been planned and developed in tourism precincts alongside other entertainment venues, attractions and tourist services (Stevens and Wootton, 1997; Stevens, 2001). At local or regional destinations, the scale of tourism development is quite different. The resource base for sport tourism at a regional community level commonly includes local club-based sports facilities, and such things as communityfunded walkways, riverside cycle tracks, and municipal recreation facilities such as swimming pools and public racquet sports venues (Weed and Bull, 2004). However, the potential benefits of sport tourism at the community level are no different when they take place in smaller geographical areas (Getz, 1991). The specific challenges that such destinations face often relate to accessibility, distance from tourist generating regions, and lack of tourism infrastructure and service development. Herein lie significant challenges for sport tourism destinations located in regional or peripheral areas.
The location hierarchy theory applies equally to built sports facilities. Baseball facilities in the USA range from local parks throughout the country at the base, to venues such as Yankee Stadium (New York) and Camden Yards Stadium (Baltimore) at the apex of the hierarchy. In the sport of cricket, the location hierarchy in England ranges from local village cricket grounds to internationally prominent venues such as Lords (London) and Edgbaston (Birmingham). Each obviously caters for quite different participant and spectator markets, with the distinction between professional and amateur sports facilities most clear, and provides equally distinct visitor experiences. Sport tourism resources and facilities that exist throughout the local hierarchy contribute, albeit in very different ways, to the resource base for sport tourism.
Case study 2.1 Hosting the XXXII defence of the America's Cup
In 2003 the Swiss Alinghisyndicate defeated Team New Zealandin Auckland (New Zealand) to win the America’s Cup. This victory saw the return of the America’s Cup to Europe for the first time in 152 years of international competition. As a landlocked nation, it was impossible for the Swiss to defend the America’s Cup in Switzerland, so competition began between destinations seeking to host the Louis Vuitton Challenger series (April 2007) and XXXII defence of the America’s Cup scheduled to begin in June 2007. The search for a destination to host the America’s Cup in Mediterranean Europe was contested between the Atlantic city of Lisbon (Portugal) and the Mediterranean cities of Valencia (Spain), Marseille (France) and Naples (Italy), after the cities of Palma de Majorca, Barcelona (Spain), Porto Cervo and Elba (Italy) were excluded from further consideration. The right to host the XXXII defence of the America’s Cup was awarded to Valencia (Spain). In addition to the Louis Vuitton and America’s Cup regattas, Valencia will host a series of preliminary regattas from September 2004 as part of the build-up to the 2007 event. Interestingly, the host city decision was based primarily on superior meteorological conditions relating to the optimal wind conditions for the sport of America’s Cup-class yacht racing. Clearly, it is necessary that destination managers are cognizant of the resources that exist at a specific destination, the relevance of these resources to different sports, and the immediate or long-term tourism development opportunities that they may offer. The case of the America’s Cup yachting regatta, which is associated with demonstrated and significant economic and tourism development opportunities (Orams and Brons, 1999), demonstrates these points. (Source:http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/3239636.stm )
Various approaches to understanding sport tourism resources exist. These include the classification of resources that are nature-based (albeit usually with some form of cultural development) or built specifically for the purposes of sport (Hinch and Higham, 2004). The quality of sport tourism resources, be they natural or built, will bear upon the local/regional, national and /or international tourist catchments that they may influence. Thus the analysis of sport tourism resources is incomplete without consideration being given to the quality, uniqueness and status of those resources and their tourism market range.
Issues of resource quality and market demand are of great relevance to sport tourism destinations. The resource requirements of a given sport differ significantly based on types of sporting pursuit, with the distinctions between amateur/ professional, novice/elite and recreational/competitive participants particularly evident. This point is well illustrated by the sport of skiing. The physical resource requirements for this sport are, essentially, skiable terrain and adequate seasonal snow cover. However, the specific resource requirement of skiers vary between the following groups:
- Competing professional athletes (e.g. event management resources)
- Elite training athletes (e.g. sports science and sports medicine facilities)
- Extreme skiers (e.g. appropriate terrain)
- Recreational skiers (e.g. visitor facility development and terrain that offers appropriate levels of challenge)
- Novice skiers (e.g. ski hire and ski school services)
- Family holiday skiers (e.g. accommodation and leisure facilities).
Thus, again, the link between a physical resource inventory and the market demands for a specific resource is evident.
Standeven and De Knop (1999) articulate the importance of understanding tourism infrastructure and superstructure as part of the destination resource analysis process. Levels of appropriate accommodation, transport infrastructure, tourist information services, ancillary attractions and tourist activities are important elements of the destination resource base. Proximity to visitor markets and accessibility are important factors in the analysis of sport tourism destinations, particularly in the case of regular season sport competitions, and one-off or recurring sports events. However, it is also noteworthy that, for some, the experience of exotic and unique destinations, and perhaps even travel to the destination itself, is an important part of the overall visitor experience (Clawson and Knetch, 1966).
Sport tourism resource analysis must also consider matters that lie beyond the‘bricks and mortar’ of sports facilities and tourism infrastructure. Institutional arrangements form a critical element of resource analysis (Mitchell, 1989). The extent to which policy and planning agencies at a destination are willing and able to collaborate is an important political dimension of the sport tourism resource analysis (Weed and Bull, 2004). So, too, are coordinated public and private sector interests, and the availability of capital investment. These human and financial resources are instrumental in fields of sport tourism, determining such things as the timely and appropriate development of sports facilities, and the success of national and international sports events at a destination.
Human resources of relevance to sport tourism destinations include cultural capital. Sport tourism has been described as an experience of physical activity, active or passive, that takes place within the context of the experience of a specific place (Standeven and De Knop, 1999). Thus, the cultural text with which sports are associated at a given destination is an important element of sport tourism. Masters golf courses and grand slam tennis venues are set apart from other venues because of the prominence and significance of the events that they host. Wimbledon has a status elevated above all other tennis venues, with implications for visitor market catchments, because of its heritage and aura of tradition. The status of sport tourism destinations, and the value of imagery associated with sports that take place at specific and recognizable tourism destinations, is promoted by elements of uniqueness.
An understanding of sport and tourism resources at a destination is incomplete without an appreciation of sport tourism participants (Weed and Bull, 2004). Sport tourism is widely viewed as a niche sector for the tourism industry (Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources, 2000) that may be targeted to broaden the suite of visitor markets that is attracted to a destination (Bull and Weed, 1999). Sport tourism participants are often viewed as a collective market that may be approached generically, as demonstrated in the promotion of major sports events to mass audiences. The reality, however, is that sport tourism is comprised of a diverse range of niche markets (Maier and Weber, 1993; Delpy, 1997; Collins and Jackson, 2001). For instance, many Australian cities targeted specific market segments during the lead-up to the 2000 Olympic Games (Chalip, 2001). Thus, while Bull and Weed (1999: 143) identify that ‘sport tourism (represents) a collection of separate niches’, the extent to which sport generates a broad range of niche tourism markets is not fully recognized. Understanding sport tourist markets is an important step in understanding the development potential of sport tourismat a destination.
It is important that destination analyses extend to a consideration of sport tourism market demand. At the most fundamental level, sport tourism markets may be divided into leisure and business travel markets. Both are characterized by a diversity of specialized markets that can be profiled for destination marketing and development purposes. The former include visitors who attend, as participants or spectators, non-elite sports events, activity holiday centres, fantasy camps, and outdoor adventure pursuits, among many others (Delpy, 1998). The latter include professional sports teams, elite athletes, team management, sports marketing agencies, media, and professional sports administrators. Within these general classifications exist a vast range of specific niche markets that can be identified and, if strategically worthwhile, targeted by sport tourism destinations.
It is then important for destination managers to understand what motivates sport tourists, and the experiences that members of specific market segments seek. Research into tourist motivations is concerned with why people travel, the benefits they seek and the experiences they pursue to satisfy their needs and desires (Cooper et al., 1993). Tourist motivation is a function of the self-perceived needs of the traveller, which drive the decision-making process, and the purchase of tourism products (Collier, 1999). The motivational profile of t...
