Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 4, 1992 TAG: 9202040115
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
RICHMOND BACK IN RUNNING FOR GAMES
With the ouster of Doug Fonder as Virginia Amateur Sports executive director, Sports Virginia of Richmond, which has run its version of the state games since 1989, sees an opportunity to get a share of the official Commonwealth Games.On Monday, the Richmond group's marketing director, Frank Maloney, called Ken King, chairman of the VAS board of directors, to talk business.
"We will be willing to sit down and discuss what we can do to make sure amateur sports is well-served," King said.
"We have discussed no details. It appears we now have the opportunity to move forward."
Maloney said he would like to see one version of the Commonwealth Games rotated among Roanoke, Richmond, Tidewater and perhaps Northern Virginia every two years.
The site of the Games from 1993-95 has not been determined. Roanoke, Richmond and Tidewater are expected to bid for the right to play host to the event. State delegate C. Richard Cranwell, D-Vinton, has said he supports making Roanoke the permanent site of the Games.
King said his opinion as a Roanoke citizen would be to keep the games in Roanoke, but he said he doesn't know what the VAS board will support.
Maloney said he wants to see "qualifier festivals" set up that would feed into a final event - what now is the Commonwealth Games. The qualifier events, Maloney said, would be held in the localities that are not host to the finals.
Maloney's group has lobbied Gov. Doug Wilder's office to reject the recommendation that Roanoke-based VAS run the games regardless of where they are held between 1993-95. Maloney said the Governor's Commission is reviewing Fonder's ouster. The deadline for submitting bids to be host to the event from '93-'95 has been pushed back from Feb. 1 to Feb. 17, Maloney said.