Host Communications, Inc. Tour to Operate as the 'NBA Hoop-It-Up Tour';
Adds All-Star Hoop-It-Up Event as Part of NBA All-Star Saturday Night
ATLANTA, Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Bull Run Corporation (Nasdaq: BULL) today
announced that wholly owned subsidiary, Host Communications, Inc. (HOST), and
the National Basketball Association have reached an agreement to enter into a
strategic partnership on the Hoop-It-Up(R) tour -- now titled NBA Hoop-It-Up -
- and to create a new NBA All-Star Saturday Night event entitled All-Star
Hoop-It-Up.
As a partner on NBA Hoop-It-Up, the largest 3-on-3 basketball tour in the
world, the NBA will provide media and promotional support for the tour
throughout the league's extensive array of integrated media assets, which
includes game broadcasts on NBC and Turner, NBA.com, NBA.com TV, NBA
broadcasts on ESPN Radio, NBA Entertainment produced television shows (NBA
Inside Stuff and Vintage NBA), and NBA Publications (Hoop, NBA Inside Stuff
and team magazines).
The 2001 tour will culminate with the NBA Hoop-It-Up World Finals taking
place in Philadelphia at NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by Fleer, the
league's interactive fan festival run in conjunction with NBA All-Star 2002,
and will be broadcast on NBC Sports in a one-hour special. Winners of the
amateur men's and women's Hoop-It-Up championship games will advance to the
"Court of Dreams" in a time-honored, 3-on-3 match up against a team of NBA
legends and WNBA players, respectively.
In addition, the NBA has created All-Star Hoop-It-Up, a 3-on-3 basketball
tournament that will feature four teams consisting of an NBA player, WNBA
player, NBA legend and a celebrity. The NBA legend and celebrity will
substitute for one another. The event will be a 3-on-3 half court, single
elimination tournament and will be broadcast on TNT, TSN and ESPN Radio as
part of NBA All-Star Saturday Night on Saturday, February 9.
"Under Host's leadership, Hoop-It-Up has become a major force in youth
basketball," said Adam Silver, President and Chief Operating Officer, NBA
Entertainment. "Through our combined efforts, we expect to reach more fans
than ever before."
"All-Star Hoop-It-Up will provide us with an invaluable platform to
showcase the fun and excitement of the traveling version," said Marc S. Kidd,
HOST's President and Chief Operating Officer. "With the NBA's outstanding
reputation and resources, we are confident this new relationship will help
take the Hoop-It-Up property to new levels."
Hoop-It-Up, founded in 1989, is designed for players of all ages and skill
levels. Under its new NBA Hoop-It-Up name, the tour will continue to provide
quality competition in an exciting basketball environment. In 1992, the NBA
sanctioned Hoop-It-Up as its official 3-on-3 basketball tour, and then in 1997
the tour featured a first-ever partnership with NBA Canada and NBA Latin
America.
NBA Hoop-It-Up will tip-off its 14th year on March 2nd in Dallas, Texas
and will visit a total of 40 cities, reaching more than one million basketball
fans throughout the United States.
The NBA Hoop-It-Up Tour is the latest step in an increased effort by the
league to deliver NBA basketball to fans at the grassroots level. Earlier in
the year, the NBA launched the Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA presented by Gatorade and
Nike, a national support system for recreational youth basketball leagues
across the country. The program, which is supported by an all-star Advisory
Council as well as four of the country's leading national youth organizations,
features a one-of-a-kind integrated youth basketball curriculum that will
connect hundreds of thousands of players, parents and coaches.
Bull Run, through HOST, provides affinity, multimedia, promotional and
event management services support to universities, athletic conferences,
associations and corporations. Celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2002, HOST
is a multi-faceted corporation, with 22 U.S. offices and an international
division in Paris, France. HOST provides comprehensive sales, marketing,
multimedia, special event and convention/hospitality services to domestic and
international grassroots sports and lifestyle events, NCAA Division I
universities and conferences and national/global associations. Bull Run also
has significant investments in Gray Communications Systems, Inc., an owner and
operator of 13 television stations and four newspapers; Rawlings Sporting
Goods Company, Inc., a leading supplier of team sports equipment in North
America; and iHigh Inc., a marketing company focused on high school students.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are "forward looking" statements
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These statements are not guaranties of future performance and actual results
may differ materially from those forecasted.
Contacts: Robert S. Prather, Jr., Bull Run's President & Chief Executive
Officer, at (404) 266-8333 and
W. James Host, Host Communications' Chief Executive Officer, at
(859) 226-4202.
SOURCE Bull Run Corporation
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Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/gh/cnoc/comp/232438.html
CONTACT:
Robert S. Prather, Jr., President & Chief
Executive Officer of Bull Run Corporation, +1-404-266-8333, or W.
James Host, Chief Executive Officer of Host Communications, Inc.,
+1-859-226-4202
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