Junior Event in New York, USA

[Newt]

For a country where carp are generally regarded as a trash fish, it looks like we are finally making progress in some places. So if you got any juniors and want a trip over here, $10K to the winner.

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PRESS RELEASE

 

For immediate release

December 10, 2002

 

First-Ever World Junior Carp Tournament Scheduled for August 2003

Education and Ecology Important Components of Program

 

Canton NY --- Hundreds or young people from around world are expected to join British teen actor Tom Felton in search of the biggest carp in the St. Lawrence River.

 

The St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce today announced the first ever St. Lawrence International Junior Carp Tournament and I Love NY Carp Fishing School on the St. Lawrence River next summer August 19-23, 2003.

 

A mix of unique partnerships is bringing this five day event to the banks of the St. Lawrence River. The St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, the St. Lawrence County Carp Anglers Association, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (Region 6), The New York State Division of Tourism, the St. Lawrence Aquarium & Ecological Center and the Carp Angler's Group of North America are pooling their resources and knowledge to create a well-rounded forum for education about the carp. The event will culminate with a junior level fishing competition with a first prize of $10,000.00.

 

Tom Felton, known from Harry Potter movies, Anna & the King and British television is a carp aficionado. Along with Martin James, noted BBC broadcaster and fishing expert, they are lending their celebrity and knowledge to the event as guest host fishermen.

 

Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, 4-H'ers and area youth will hear and observe presentations by fish and environment experts. Teen idol, Felton, is scheduled to talk about his love for the sport and why the British kids are fascinated by carp fishing on Day One of the event. The program will be accompanied by displays of regional native species of fish and carp for the children to see first hand and close-up.

 

World renowned fishing expert Martin James, who has visited the region several times and recorded and filmed shows on fishing in St. Lawrence County, will present four classes on Days Two and Three showing youth and adults alike how to fish for carp. James, along with other fishermen, will teach clinics near the waterfront in Waddington about carp specific bait, tackle, gear and technique. Outdoor experts will teach ecology and the river environment as it pertains to supporting the carp species. In addition to the classroom, carp fishing experts

 

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will take the attendees to the banks of the river for some "hands-on" experience

fishing for carp. The fishing school is sponsored by I Love New York and is open to the public of all ages. A tuition fee will be charged which will include classes, specialized bait and tackle as well as fishing time with the skilled anglers.

 

The grand finale will be the St. Lawrence International Junior Carp Tournament

on Days Four and Five. The venue will be pre-selected sites along the St. Lawrence River from Ogdensburg to Massena. The two bridges linking the U.S. and Canada will be the boundaries.

 

The St. Lawrence County Anglers Association has mapped three hundred prime carp fishing spots for the tournament. Thirty groups of ten youngsters between the age of eleven and eighteen will be stationed along the river banks based on a pre-tournament drawing. One individual entrant will win a $10,000.00 first prize -- other cash, medals and prizes will be awarded. The prize monies have been generously provided by the New York Power Authority. The competition is endorsed by the Carp Anglers Group of North America which is the official carp fishing sanctioning organization in the United States and Canada. The organization is lending technical support to the Chamber. Marshals and weigh masters from local outdoors and sportsman's groups will monitor the contest. The first prize will be based on the heaviest catch of carp based on a bag of four fish. All the fish caught during the competition will be released. An entry fee and rental fee for equipment will be charged, and the rules and restrictions will be posted on the County Chamber's website (www.stlawrencechamber.org) along with an on-line registration which will be "live" in the next few weeks.

 

Special events for the kids and their parents will be scheduled in conjunction with the tournament. A pizza party and chicken barbecue are in the planning stages. The chamber is actively seeking sponsors to assist with the underwriting of these special events.

 

Karen St. Hilaire, Executive Director of the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, says, "This tournament is a great event for the region. We have been researching the possibilities of a world class competition for over a year. The idea of a junior tournament all began when Tom and his brother Chris Felton came to the St. Lawrence Experience in Waddington last summer after Tom had completed the filming of the second Harry potter movie. His parents gave him a trip to any place in the world. He and Chris chose to come here and for 8 days fished for carp at the edge of the St. Lawrence River. At the end of their trip they had caught 140 fish weighing a total of over a ton and a half."

 

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"When we visited him at the river front, the idea was born to have a tournament for juniors since there was none in the world. Tom and Chris promised to co-host it, and lend their expertise, so we were off and running."

 

With the marketing assistance of I Love New York in Europe, and the Carp Angler's Group in the United States, I think we're on our way to a tremendous international tournament."

 

"The fact that so many foreign visitors speak so highly of this stretch of the river, made it impossible to ignore. The local support has been overwhelming. We are getting calls already, and this is the first formal announcement of the event. The network of carp fishing enthusiasts is amazing. I think the residents and businesses along the river will be amazed at the impact of this kind of event."

 

The list of sponsors and partners is beginning to grow with Mesa Air and Specialist Tackle of Essex UK coming on board in the last week. Specialist Tackle is a British firm which concentrates in carp angling equipment. They are providing rental equipment and novelty items for each entrant. The Chambers of Commerce along the river corridor - Ogdensburg, Waddington and Massena - are helping to coordinate lodging requests and special needs of the tournament guests.

 

Logistics, marketing, sponsor liaison and committee coordination will be furnished by Stellar Marketing Solutions of Massena.

 

# # #

 

For more information:

 

Kathleen Kelly

Stellar Marketing Solutions

10 Lincoln Place

Massena NY 13662

315-764-5654 (phone/fax)

StellMarkSolve@aol.com

 

Or,

 

Karen St. Hilaire

St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce

5862 Route 11

Canton NY 13617

315-386-4000

slccoc@northnet.org

[phil dean]

Ok, just to be clear, which character does tom play in HP?

 

Honest, it will be important to some of the possible entrants.

[Chris Plumb]

Draco Malfoy - Harry's MAIN protagonist....

 

Chris

[phil dean]

I did a search under his name and apparently he's very popular with the ladies (well girls actually), lets hope h brings some of them into the sport, the more the merrier.

[Newt]

Well - if we got any really hot junior carpers on here, somebody could pay for a trip to the US, have some fun fishing and mingling with the stars, and still get home with some money left over.

[chesters1]

is it world as in the whole globe or world as in that funny girls game rounders :confused: pronounced baseball in americanese

[Newt]

World as in anglers from anywhere are welcome to fish it.

 

World as in they really hope to draw some international interest. But with the event being age-restricted to youngsters, there may be a limit to how many folks are willing to travel.

 

So global would be nice if it happens. And if not this year, maybe next.

[phil dean]

So are you interested Mr Guttfield???? Surely Am or AT could be persuaded into funding an "English" contingent and you've proved you're a match for these fish before.

[chesters1]

i think (due to us being in the center of the map ) it should be held over here , then the rich americans can pay the plane fares (and ofcourse be ripped off by licenced bandits called "taxi`s" ) and be charged £15 for an icecream etc

[Newt]

But chesters1 - the concentration of carp is over here. St. Lawrence and nearby waters.