Omaha - Sports and Recreation

Sports and Recreation

Sports have a long history in Omaha. The Omaha Sports Commission is a quasi-governmental nonprofit organization that coordinates much of the professional and amateur athletic activity in the city, including the 2008 and 2012 US Olympic Swimming Team Trials and the building of a new stadium in North Downtown. The University of Nebraska and the Commission co-hosted the 2008 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division One Women's Volleyball Championship in December of that year. Another quasi-governmental board, the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority (MECA), was created by city voters in 2000, and is responsible for maintaining the CenturyLink Center Omaha. In June 2009, MECA announced that the US Olympic Swim Trials will return to Omaha, to run from June 25 through July 2, 2012. The Swim Trials will overlap with the College World Series, also to be held downtown, for 1–2 days.

Omaha's Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium was home to the Omaha Storm Chasers (at the time known as the Omaha Royals) minor-league baseball team (the AAA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals). From 1950-2010, it hosted the annual NCAA College World Series, or CWS, men's baseball tournament in mid-June.

After Rosenblatt Stadium closed, its tenants moved to new venues. On April 16, 2011 the Omaha Storm Chasers played their first game at the new Werner Park in the Omaha suburb of Papillion. The CWS moved to the new downtown stadium TD Ameritrade Park in 2011. Omaha is also home to the Omaha Diamond Spirit, a collegiate summer baseball team that plays in the MINK league.

In July 2010 Omaha hosted the inaugural TD Ameritrade College Home Run Derby at Rosenblatt Stadium. East Tennessee State University First Baseman Paul Hoilman hit 12 home runs in the final round to beat out Fresno State’s Jordan Ribera and Georgia Tech’s Matt Skole for the title.

The World-Herald will partner with the TD Ameritrade College Home Run Derby Contest on July 2, 2011 for its 27th annual fireworks display. The event will be held at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.

On April 15, 2010, it was announced that Omaha would be home to a new expansion team in the United Football League to begin play in 2010. The team played its inaugural season at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium before moving to TD Ameritrade Park for 2011 and beyond.

Named in tribute to Omaha's meatpacking past, the Omaha Beef indoor football team plays at the Omaha Civic Auditorium.

The Creighton University Bluejays compete in a number of NCAA Division I sports. They are a member of the Big East. Baseball is played at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, soccer is played at Morrison Stadium, and basketball is played at the 18,000 seat CenturyLink Center. The Jays annually rank in the top 15 in attendance each year, averaging more than 16,000 people per game.

Ice hockey is a popular spectator sport in Omaha and there are two Omaha-area teams. The Omaha Lancers, a United States Hockey League team that played at Aksarben until 2004, moved to neighboring city of Council Bluffs at the Mid-America Center, and moved back to Omaha in 2009 to play at the Civic Auditorium The University of Nebraska at Omaha Mavericks, is an NCAA Division I team that plays at the CenturyLink Center. Omaha has a thriving running community and many miles of paved running and biking trails throughout the city and surrounding communities. The Omaha Marathon involves a half-marathon and a 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) race that take place annually in September.

Omaha is the birthplace of numerous important historical and modern sports figures, including 1960 Summer Olympics gold medalist and NBA star Bob Boozer; Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson; 1989 American League Rookie of the Year Gregg Olson; NFL running back Ahman Green; Heisman Trophy winners Johnny Rodgers and Eric Crouch; Pro Football Hall of Famer Gale Sayers; and champion tennis player Andy Roddick.

The City of Omaha administers a parks and recreation department that oversees six regional parks, including Dodge Park and Gene Leahy Mall, and 13 community parks, including Benson Park, Miller Park and Hanscom Park. Part of Omaha's riverfront area is now the Heartland of America Park, including a marina, Miller's Landing, and the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge, a footbridge crossing into Council Bluffs.

The city's historic boulevards were originally designed by Horace Cleveland in 1889 to work with the parks to create a seamless flow of trees, grass and flowers throughout the city. Florence Boulevard and Fontenelle Boulevard are among the remnants of this system. Omaha boasts more than 80 miles (129 km) of trails for pedestrians, bicyclists and hikers. They include the American Discovery Trail, which traverses the entire United States, and the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail passes through Omaha as it travels 3,700 miles (5,950 km) westward from Illinois to Oregon. Trails throughout the area are included in comprehensive plans for the city of Omaha, the Omaha metropolitan area, Douglas County, and long-distance coordinated plans between the municipalities of southeast Nebraska.