Small wonder Neil Lumsden understands the 'sport' in sports tourism.
The former Canadian Football League (CFL) star, and now Ontario’s minister of tourism, culture and sport, toured Horseshoe Resort in Oro-Medonte Township on Monday, getting the lay of the land.
“It’s just to get a better understanding of their business model, what they’re doing, why they’re having so much success, why they’re as good at doing what they do,” Lumsden said.
“It’s good for us to get a better understanding, at the ground level, of how this business is run and the great strides they’re making and the changes they make on an ongoing basis to have a great offering for families that, as I saw today, on a Monday, is just tremendous," he added.
Horseshoe was its usual beehive of activity Monday, with skiers and snowboarders going on and coming off its snowy hills — no doubt aided by recent snowfalls and some sunshine.
Lumsden toured the resort with Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte MPP Doug Downey, who is also Ontario’s attorney general.
The visiting MPP said the importance of sports tourism cannot be over-estimated.
“Massive, it’s massive,” Lumsden said. “You see how the impact is from an employment perspective, the amount of people that Horseshoe employs, year-round, the amount of revenue it drives within the community.
“Whether it’s just people filling up with gas or going to a restaurant, or staying here and skiing, the residual effect is huge,” he added. “Whether it’s one event coming here this weekend, or during a week (day), the impact is tremendous. I think we may lose sight of the importance of tourism and how it drives communities.”
Lumsden also noted his ministry has played a role in sports tourism surviving the COVID-19 pandemic, a nearly three-year-old international health emergency, with funding for the industry.
But the industry’s own talents are also impressive, the minister added.
“Seeing how they’ve navigated through a very, very difficult time and how appreciative they are of our government support of what they do,” he said. “They might not have made it had it not been for our government providing money through that and allowing them to come out the other side.
“(They’re) better than they were beforehand because they had to be creative, they had to take a good hard look at their business model and how they were not only going to get through, but how they would be better.”
Lumsden also said Ontarians are again appreciating what they have in their home province.
“The recognition of what Ontario has to offer … and we’re seeing it and hearing about it more importantly and I think it’s going to pay dividends in the long run,” he said.
“Certainly people want to go outside the province and I get that, but examine what we have and some of the great things within the province,” Lumsden added. “It doesn’t matter the season, doesn’t matter the time, Ontario has a whole lot to offer and people are starting to recognize it.”
Lumsden, a three-time Grey Cup champion as a fullback with Edmonton Eskimos (now called the Elks), was also scheduled to be at Mount St. Louis on Monday morning and at Blue Mountain near Collingwood this afternoon to hand out awards for the snowboard championship.
The Hamilton East-Stoney Creek MPP was elected to the Ontario Legislature as a Progressive Conservative in last June’s Ontario election.
