Indianapolis has been growing and developing into a world-class city for many years. With the Pan Am games in 1987 and several NCAA Final Fours held there, Indianapolis is no stranger to the world stage. But the spotlight it has just got quite a bit bigger.
With the Super Bowl of 2012 held at our very own Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis is emerging more and more on its own as a true city of sports fame.
It just has to be sure and put its very best foot forward to make the most of the opportunities presented to it.
The Indy 500 is one time each year where the nation, and indeed much of the world, gets to see the fair city. People travel from every corner of the world to come here to Indiana. If you ever have the chance to go out to the track and meet our visitors, you'll find many of them love Indiana, especially when the rain holds off.
It's no big secret that Indianapolis has one major goal for its future. The Olympic games have been a dream of this state for many decades. The Pan Am Games might have in some ways calmed our appetite for an Indianapolis Olympics, but in other ways, all it accomplished was to show us that we should be capable of hosting the summer games.
It is truly the highest order for a city to hold the games, and I think we are up to the challenge.
The trick of being a world-class city is that you must constantly be at your best. While Indiana is host to great events and a proud state, we do have our fair share of problems. This is not necessarily something to hold us back, but rather something to work on.
We have a bit of the American rust belt in the north. Crime rates in our largest cities are far beyond what we want. Every town has problems. But every town also has dreams. That is what Indianapolis and indeed the whole state have in common. We love to dream.
There are other great benefits to the vast amount of attention Indiana gets with events such as the Super Bowl and the 500. International attention brings in a great deal of money to the city. This money is immediately seen in the restaurant and hotel patrons brought in. But it also stays in the form of businesses set up specifically for these events.
There are businesses in Indianapolis making money they never could have made without the stadium construction downtown. There are numerous race teams set up on the north side of Indianapolis. This brings in more money for the city and state aside from what the race itself brings in.
A lot of people are really proud of being Hoosiers. There is something special about loving where you're from. These events make us a little more proud. It takes a lot of work and dedication to make things like the Super Bowl happen, but when they do, we all shine.
It's tough to be in the spotlight. But Indiana seems to thrive in it. We take it in stride every year. We truly are a world-class city. It's just extra nice when everyone else realizes it too.
Write to Alex atapcarroll@bsu.edu
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