CBC CEO Jim Goodmon (center) receives a U.S. Olympic Festival-’87 Legacy Award from Triangle Sports Commission CEO Hill Carrow and Olympic Gold Medalist Nancy Lynn Hogshead on Friday, September 22, 2017.
Over 30 years ago CBC CEO Jim Goodmon and Capitol Broadcasting came on board as their first major sponsor of the U.S. Olympic Festival in the Triangle. In the fall of 1984, NC Amateur Sports landed the festival that would take over the Triangle in 1987. Goodmon recently received a U.S. Olympic Festival-’87 Legacy Award for his part in the endeavor and beyond.
The 1987 U.S. Olympic Festival 30th Anniversary Reception and Banquet took place at Embassy Suites Cary on Friday, September 22, 2017. Eight honorees, including Goodmon, were recognized at the event.
Hill Carrow, CEO of the Triangle Sports Commission and former President and Executive Director of the 1987 Olympic Festival explained that these Legacy Awards were created “to recognize those individuals or organizations that have continued the legacy of North Carolina’s largest-ever sporting event – the 1987 U.S. Olympic Festival.”
The Festival made a lasting impact on the Triangle. The event served as a catalyst for “the expedited completion of Interstate 40, the expedited completion of Terminal 2 at Raleigh-Durham International Airport, the installation of the state’s first regional fiber optic network, the execution of the Triangle’s first regional transportation system, the launch of North Carolina Amateur Sports, the creation of the State Games of north Carolina, and the start of North Carolina’s statewide roadside flower program, among others,” according to the Commission.
CBC CEO Jim Goodmon speaks at the U.S. Olympic Festival-’87 30th Anniversary Celebration when he is honored with a Legacy Award.
Beyond his leading the charge for the 1987 Olympic Festival by being the first major sponsor, Goodmon has had lasting impact on the sports industry in the Triangle. He spearheaded the development of WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary and the Durham Bulls Athletic Park which serves as a catalyst for the revitalization of downtown Durham.
The 1987 U.S. Olympic Festival took place in the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and Cary) and the Triad (Greensboro) for fourteen days, July 13-26, 1987. The Festival holds the record for the largest sports event ever to take place in North Carolina. The event included 34 sports in 25 venues and drew 464,000 spectators.
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Thanks to Triangle Sports Commission’s Hill Carrow for these capcom photos.
