KANSAS CITY, KAN. ? A bevy of awards has been bestowed upon Kansas Speedway in recent weeks, including “Track of the Year” by Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal and a tourism achievement award presented by Kansas Gov. Bill Graves.

Other awards include an “Honors Award” recognizing engineering excellence from the Consulting Engineers Council of Missouri and an award of merit from the Associated General Contractors of America.

Lastly, Kansas Speedway’s NASCAR Winston Cup Series Protection One 400 was named one of the “Ten Most Important Events of 2002” by TV Guide.

Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal named Kansas Speedway “Track of the Year” in its Feb. 17 NASCAR Motorsports Awards issue. The story extolled the private-public partnership between International Speedway Corporation, the state of Kansas and the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., for financing the $225 million speedway. The sold-out crowds at the track’s major events, the warm welcome of race officials at state and local functions and the track’s new fan base also contributed to the recognition.

Gov. Graves recently honored Kansas Speedway with the “2002 Governor’s Tourism Achievement Award,” citing the track has produced jobs, revenue and media exposure for the state. The speedway pumps about $150 million in tourism dollars back into the state each year, and has generated about 1,719 full-time jobs since the project began.

TV Guide chose Kansas Speedway’s Protection One 400 race as No. 8 of the 2002 season’s “Ten Most Important Events” because it helped NASCAR’s growth into the nation’s Heartland.

The “Honors Award” presented by the Consulting Engineers Council of Missouri recognizes engineering achievements of Kansas Speedway. Since 1974, the council has judged projects on design excellence, how those projects meet client needs and how the projects benefit the public. HNTB helped design Kansas Speedway. Kansas Speedway was submitted under the special projects category. The honor award now moves to the national level, which will be presented on March 12 in Washington, D.C.

Turner Construction Co., the firm that built Kansas Speedway, recently was named a Merit Winner for its work on the track. The project received a “Build America Award” from the Associated General Contractors of America, who, each year, recognizes innovative building techniques, design and how a project benefits the community.

Kansas Speedway opens for its second year with the Kansas Speedway / Oklahoma Joe’s Barbecue Cookoff April 26 and 27. More than 250 barbecue teams from around the country are expected to vie for $40,000 in cash prizes, including a $10,000 grand champion award.