COLUMBUS, Ohio — Before the Olympic summer games kick off in Paris later this month, thousands of athletes from across the country are in Ohio competing for gold.

And with more than 6,200 people participating in the USA Fencing Championships at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, organizers said it’s the largest event in the sport’s history and is expected to infuse about $7 million into the area’s economy.

“Because not only do we have 6,200 fencers, but each of them comes with a family member or a caregiver, plus a coach,” said USA Fencing Director of Communications Bryan Wendell. “Then we have hundreds of officials here and tournament staff and vendors. So, all said and done, there’s easily more than 10,000 people here in Columbus staying at the hotels, eating at the restaurants and going shopping at the stores.”

Wendell said, since it’s an Olympic year, that is also increasing interest in the sport. He said the organization is ending its 2023-2024 season with about 40,000 members, setting another record.

The fencing finalists competing in the Summer Nationals range in age from 10 to older than 80 and come from 45 states. The 10-day event takes place through Monday.