Grenada has won international admiration following a live broadcast of its inaugural Invitational. “Everyone’s buzzing about Grenada,” says the Grenada Tourism Authority (GTA).
Hosted on 8 April 2017, Grenada’s Invitational was the first track and field meet of the season, and was aired to an estimated audience of 90 million viewers via the American television network ESPN2. Speaking on the live broadcast, the GTA said that “During that time, viewers were treated to gorgeous visual presentations of ‘Pure Grenada’s’ stunning scenery, friendly people, and abundant activities for visitors through adverts and promotional videos provided by the Grenada Tourism Authority.”
In addition to representing Grenada at its most spectacular, the broadcast featured a line-up of top world athletes including Grenada’s Kirani James, Asafa Powell, Veronica Campbell Brown, and Justin Gatlin. Mr James, who won a gold medal in the 400-metre race at the 2012 London Olympics, is Grenada’s first and only Olympic medallist, and the country’s most renowned sportsman. At a ceremony at the Invitational, Grenada’s National Athletic Stadium was renamed the Kirani James Athletics Stadium, in what was described as a “historic moment” for the nation. Mr James then stunned the crowd once more by winning the day’s 400-metre race.
Chief Executive Officer of the GTA, Ms Patricia Maher, remarked on the success of the event, and the positive impact it will have on tourism in the future: “By all accounts, Grenada got the global brand visibility we were looking for […] The marketing exposure we received for our tourism destination was priceless,” she commented.
Grenada, known as the ‘Spice Isle’ of the Caribbean, is a tri-island nation consisting of Grenada, Carriacou, and Petite Martinique. Situated in the south-east of the Caribbean Sea, the country enjoys a robust fiscal climate and a growing tourism industry, supported by a vibrant culture, a natural landscape, and popular sporting events.