Happenings
FBC
UPFRONT
Bally Files for Bankruptcy Again
time in 17 months and put itself up for sale. Bally says it has more than $1-billion (U.S.) of both assets and debts and more than 100,000 creditors. Bally first filed for bankruptcy protection on July 31, 2007,
C
receiving a $233.6 million bailout from hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners. At this time, all Bally clubs in Canada were sold. As reported in Fitness Business Canada and FitNet (July, 2007), Extreme Fitness acquired three Bally and three Bally-owned Sports Clubs of Canada fitness clubs in Toronto. GoodLife Fitness Clubs purchased the remaining 10 Sports Clubs of Canada and Bally Total Fitness Canadian locations. According to Chief Executive Officer Michael Sheehan, the bur-
den of Bally’s long-term indebtedness, coupled with the lack of refinancing options in today’s constrained credit markets, leſt no alternative other than a bankruptcy filing, despite “marked im- provement” in Bally’s operating results. The company says it has received “strong” interest from pro-
spective purchasers and is in “active and advanced” talks with some lenders on an agreement to buy its assets. If it negotiates such an agreement, lenders would provide it with financing to conduct day-to-day operations. Bally says it can reorganize on its own, if it is unable to arrange
a sale, and that the bankruptcy process should allow it to signifi- cantly reduce debt and streamline operations.
EVENTS
YOGA PILATES Conference and Show
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
April 2-5 2009
A full four day CONFERENCE hosting over 161 classes with 44 internation- ally renowned YOGA and PILATES professionals, including Mari Winsor, Rodney Yee and 42 others. ALSO, a three day SHOW, April 3-5 2009, host- ing 51 YOGA and PILATES classes and over 120 Vendors. EDUCATE . INSPIRE . EVOLVE ! www.theyogaconference.com 905-404-9642
Los Angeles Fitness Expo
The 2009 Los Angeles Fitness Expo is billed as California’s largest
health and fitness weekend, running January 24-25 at the Los Angeles
Convention Center.
Attendees will find over 250 exhibits offering the latest in fitness, diet,
nutrition, strength and wellness products and services. The expo also offers 10 ma-
jor competitions, including The Iron Man Pro XX, All American Strongman Challenge, The Scot Mendelson Pro Bench Press Classic, USPF American Cup Powerliſting plus an international Sumo tournament. For more information, visit www.thefitexpo.com.
hicago based Bally Total Fitness Holding Corp, which oper- ates 347 health clubs serving more than 3.1 million cus- tomers, filed for bankruptcy protection for the second
8 Happenings | 14 IHRSA Healthcare Report 16 What's New
NATIONAL CAMPAIGN
ParticipACTION launches Get Inspired, Get Moving
Toronto-based ParticipACTION is addressing the nation’s inactivity crisis by launching a new campaign called “Get Inspired, Get Moving” and using Canadian icons. It’s running in English and French and uses TV spots and the web to target busy Canadian parents with children ages 7 to 12. In the 30-second spots Canadians like Donovan Bailey and Mary Walsh ask, “What’s your ParticipACTION?” and drive consumers online to submit per- sonal stories about the impact of active liv- ing on their lives. Stories are uploaded to a “Wall of Inspiration” on ParticipACTION.com. In early 2009, some of them will be featured in a TV commercial. For more information, visit www.participACTION.com.
Threat to children’s health
Children are naturally energetic, but without encouragement they may become sedentary. These days, many children spend more and more time sitting – in class, on a school bus, or at home reading, doing homework, using the computer, playing video games, talking on the phone or watching TV. These can all be educational and pleasurable, but the re- ality is more than half of Canadian children aged 5 to 17 aren’t active enough for opti- mal health and development.
8 Fitness Business Canada January/February 2009
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