He's a pro at promoting amateur sport.

• Position: Triangle

The sporting events that Hill Carrow brings to North Carolina may not be as familiar as the Atlantic Coast Conference basketball tournament or U.S. Open golf tournament, but some have been more lucrative and drawn bigger crowds. The lawyer-turned-fundraiser-turned-organizer lures niche competitions--pingpong, anyone?--to the state, and the competitions, in turn, generate millions of dollars for the Tar Heel economy.

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Hill Carrow

CEO of Cary-based Sports & Properties Inc., founded 2002

Age 57

Hometown Kinston

Education UNC Chapel Hill, 1977 Columbia Law School, 1980

Past jobs In-house counsel for Raleigh-based Carolina Power & Light Co. (now Progress Energy Inc.), 1982-84; president and executive director of U.S. Olympic Festival, 1985-88; Downers Grove, Ill.-based Sara Lee Corp.'s sponsorship coordinator for 1994 and 1996 Olympics; director of corporate partnerships and services for 2002 Olympics (reported to Mitt Romney)

Recent instate events 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Greensboro; 2012 U.S. Masters Swimming Spring Nationals, Greensboro; North America 2012 Olympic Games Qualifying Tournament for table tennis, Cary

Current targets 2014 USA Gymnastics Championships and 2016 Olympic Trials for swimming, both of which he hopes to bring to Greensboro

How Sports & Properties works

Hill Carrow's consultation and promotion company has worked with cities such as New York, Cincinnati and Raleigh on how to improve their sports tourism. It also helped broker naming rights for Durham Bulls Athletic Park and BB&T Field in Winston-Salem. Its event-planning arm adapts its business model for different competitions. For example, it took the upfront financial risk for the figure-skating championships, raising the $3 million needed to put on the contest. "You have to bring in at least that much to break even or make money," Carrow says. Other times, a local sports commission takes the risk and Sports & Properties assists in planning and fundraising. Carrow also volunteers his time. The company employs just a handful of people, the number usually around five. Annual revenue ranges from...