GOVERNOR RELEASES STATEMENT ON NFL PRO BOWL

Governor Linda Lingle said she is disappointed that the Pro Bowl will likely move from Hawaii in 2010.  The NFL decided to play the post-season all-star game in the same city as the Super Bowl, one week prior to that event, on a one-year test basis.  In a statement released today, the governor said the state and the NFL have had a successful and collaborative 28-year relationship, and she is optimistic that the Pro Bowl will return in 2011.

“The senior leadership of the NFL told me explicitly that their decision had nothing to do with anything the State did or did not do, but was an opportunity to try something they had been talking about for years,” said Lingle.  She went on to say, “I, along with the Hawai`i Tourism Authority, will continue to maintain open and ongoing dialogue with the NFL.”

(Posted:  Monday, December 29, 2008)