A survey gauging the economic benefit of sports events in Lake Macquarie will help shape millions of dollars worth of investment in coming years.
Lake Macquarie City Council launched the survey on its Shape Lake Mac website on Tuesday to gather information from professional and amateur sports associations, groups and clubs.
"This is the first time we've addressed sport's impact on driving our local economies, and we are really interested in what the results will be," Arts, Culture and Tourism manager Jacqui Hemsley said.
"We want to ensure we have our finger on Lake Macquarie's sporting pulse."
Recent successful events include the NSW Surf Life Saving Championships, Port 2 Port mountain bike race, the Lake Mac City Pro Junior surfing contest and the Gymnastics NSW Country Championships.
"This survey will help us establish a new level of understanding about where we should best invest, promote and support sports activities," Ms Hemsley said.
"It will also help us identify and pursue opportunities to boost sports tourism in Lake Macquarie."
Information from the survey will help determine which sports attract local, regional and interstate events, how many participants they attract each year and how many other people visit Lake Macquarie to attend as spectators.
It will also look at what times of year are busiest for any given sport, the cost of annual club memberships and the number and type of paid staff involved.
Another section of the survey assesses the sporting community's opinion of council's facilities - how well they are maintained and whether council adequately supports sports organisations.
The survey is open until October 4.
