May 6 – 7, 2026 | Colorado Springs

SportsTravel Road Trip

ABOUT

Organized by SportsTravel magazine and sponsored by Louisville Tourism and the Louisville Sports Commission, the SportsTravel Road Trip is a by-invitation-only networking and education event for chief executives and event directors of sports governing bodies.

AGENDA

May 6, 2026

4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m

Networking Reception

National Strength & Conditioning Center
1885 Bob Johnson Dr.
Colorado Springs

Join your fellow SportsTravel Road Trip attendees for an informal networking reception at the newly renovated National Strength & Conditioning Center. Our friends from Louisville will be providing the bourbon, or come just to catch up with your friends in the sports industry across Colorado Springs.

May 7, 2026

8:45 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.

Networking Breakfast

Weidner Field – Premier Club
111 W Cimarron St Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903

The entrance to the Premier Club is on the corner of West Cimarron and Sierra Madre. Parking is available across Sierra Madre, with cones to show the reserved area.

9:15 a.m. – 9:30 a.m

Welcome to the SportsTravel Road Trip

Weidner Field – Premier Club

Attendees will be welcomed by Jason Gewirtz of the Northstar Meetings Group, representatives of Louisville Tourism and the USOPC. An update on planning for the Olympic and Paralympic SportsLink at TEAMS ’26 in Birmingham will also be provided.

9:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.

State of the Sports-Events Industry

Weidner Field – Premier Club

The Sports Events & Tourism Association has just completed its latest State of the Industry research focused on the impact of sports-related travel. Hear the latest findings and learn how you can use this data in your own organization’s storytelling about the power sports events have as economic drivers.

Presenter: Jordan Dillon / Sports Events & Tourism Association

9:45 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

Milan and Cortina: Lessons Learned and the Road Ahead

Weidner Field – Premier Club

The 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games were an unqualified success for Team USA. But it didn’t come by accident. In this session, hear from the leaders of USA Hockey, U.S. Figure Skating and USA Bobsled/Skeleton on the work that went into preparing their teams, lessons learned from the most spread out Games in history and how they intend to build on the momentum of their teams’ performances on the ice to generate further growth in their respective sports.

Presenters: Pat Kelleher / USA Hockey; Matt Farrell / U.S. Figure Skating; Aron McGuire / USA Bobsled/Skeleton

10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.

Networking Break

10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.

Colorado Springs Switchbacks: Building a Community

Weidner Field – Premier Club

Brad Estes took over as president of the Colorado Springs Switchbacks last year at a time of transition for the club. In his new role, he’s aiming to fulfill a mission that is larger than the club’s performance on the field. With significant development in and around Weidner Field, the club’s ownership team has a bigger goal of becoming a community resource and asset. Hear from Estes on the approach he and the team are taking to expand opportunities in Colorado Springs both for the club and the community, and the role the Switchbacks intend to play in the years to come.

Presenter: Brad Estes / Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC

SPEAKERS

Jordan Dillon

Associate Director of Membership and Engagement, Rights Holders, Sports Events & Tourism Association

Jordan Dillon is the associate director of membership and engagement, rights holders, at the Sports Events & Tourism Association, bringing a career rooted in sports, partnerships, and community connection to the role. She has spent more than 15 years helping organizations, including national governing bodies such as USA Gymnastics and USA Synchro and local nonprofits, create meaningful relationships, events, and experiences that move their missions forward. Before joining Sports ETA, Jordan served as the executive director of the Broad Ripple Village Association, where she led community engagement, membership and event strategy. Her earlier career included managing national sports tours, large-scale sponsorship activations, and brand partnerships that connected athletes, fans, and cities through sport.

Brad Estes

President, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC

Brad Estes was named president of Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC in February 2025, bringing aboard the experienced executive as it moves into a new era under the ownership of Weidner Apartment Homes. Estes joined the Switchbacks having previously served in the same position at Louisville City FC, where he oversaw the creation of Lynn Family Stadium and the club’s Academy program while building a robust club ecosystem that connected LouCity’s fanbase and culture and developed a deep-rooted connection between the club and the city. Estes joined Louisville City in 2016 as a consultant, was named executive vice president in 2017, was promoted to president in 2018, and stayed with the club until 2022. During his tenure, he oversaw the club for five seasons, including the 2017 and 2018 seasons when the club won back-to-back league USL Championship titles.

Matt Farrell

CEO, U.S. Figure Skating

Matt Farrell was named CEO of U.S. Figure Skating in April 2025, bringing nearly 30 years of experience to the organization, having spent the majority of his career in C-suite positions within the Olympic movement. Before joining U.S. Figure Skating, Farrell most recently served as CEO of Bat Around, a virtual mixed-reality software and app designed for use in batting cages, while also leading his own sports marketing consulting firm, Farrell Sports. Most notably, Farrell spent more than 13 years as chief marketing officer at USA Swimming where he led all commercial operations, helping the organization reach the highest sponsor revenue and membership numbers in its history. Additionally, Farrell has held marketing leadership roles at the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Warner Brothers Entertainment and the Golf Channel/NBC Sports.

Pat Kelleher

Executive Director, USA Hockey

Pat Kelleher has been a champion for progress on many fronts throughout his tenure since being named executive director of USA Hockey in 2017, highlighted by concentrated efforts on growth, including a focus on advancing a more welcoming environment at all levels of the sport; safety of the game; and success on the international stage. In 2024–2025, a record number of participants were part of USA Hockey, including more than 1 million players, coaches officials and volunteers. On the world stage, U.S. teams earned medals in all seven major world championships, with an unprecedented five gold medals, including in the IIHF Men’s and Women’s World Championships, the IIHF World Junior Championship, the IPC World Para Ice Hockey Championship and the first-ever IPC World Para Ice Hockey Women's World Championship. The teams also swept all gold medals at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

Aron McGuire

CEO, USA Bobsled/Skeleton

Aron McGuire has been the CEO of USA Bobsled/Skeleton since February 2020. Previously he was senior director of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Centers in Colorado Springs and Lake Placid. Prior to that McGuire served in several positions at USA Track & Field. He was responsible for coordinating many aspects of USATF national teams, including, registration, team processing, travel, security, housing, uniform distribution, communications, passport and visa application. McGuire was a member of the USA National Bobsled Team, competing in World Cup and World Championships competitions in the USA, Canada, Italy, Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland.

CONTACT

Event Organizer Contact:

Nicole Goddeyne

310-954-2504

[email protected]

Event Logistics Contact:

Beth Dean

513-817-8737

[email protected]