Cyclists whizzed through Salt Lake City streets, huffed up mountain canyons, then screamed down.

Real Madrid scored goals at the University of Utah's Rice-Eccles Stadium. Real Salt Lake scored even bigger, breaking ground for its new soccer stadium in Sandy.

The Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau determined 75,000 out-of-town guests were in the capital city over the weekend. "There was incredible energy downtown," said its president, Scott Beck.

Not since the 2002 Winter Olympics has the world of recreational sports put Utah in such a spotlight or contributed so much to the state's economic well-being.

"The sports industry is really starting to reach out and flex its muscles," said Jeff Robbins, executive director of the Utah Sports Commission, a nonprofit organization created by the Legislature to foster national and international amateur sports competitions in the state. "This weekend put on exclamation point on the fact that sports and recreation are an industry, a substantial engine in the economy."

With the expansion of the Salt Palace Convention Center allowing this year's Outdoor Retailer Summer Market to be the biggest ever, the trade show's contribution to the state's economy is likely to approach $20 million.

The Real Madrid-Real Salt Lake exhibition soccer game Saturday night probably generated another $13 million, based on an economic survey of a somewhat smaller World Cup soccer game in 2005.

Larry H. Miller's weeklong Tour of Utah bicycle race likely infused Utah's economy with cash under the $1 million mark. "An event like this grows and matures and you will have a lot more economic impact over time," Robbins said.

The stadium deal means all sorts of construction workers and contractors will draw future paychecks building the $55 million stadium.

The figures may be a pittance compared with the Olympics, which, the state calculated:

* Produced $4.8 billion in total economic impact

* Attracted 250,000 visitors who spent $350 million

* Generated 35,000 job-years of employment and $1.5 billion in income for Utah workers between 1996 and 2003

* Directed $76 million in tax revenue to state and local government

* Left behind three world-class sporting venues and a $76 million endowment to run them.

But for a weekend, it's still a sizable amount.

Just as importantly, Robbins said, the weekend's convergence of soccer, cycling and outdoor recreation generated publicity that keeps Salt Lake City and Utah in the international eye.

"We got hundreds of mentions in articles, if not thousands, worldwide. That's another measure that people sometimes don't think about," he added. "People in cycling, adventure racing, outdoor recreation and soccer were all watching the state of Utah and were impressed by all of the things we're doing."

Making that kind of an impression has been a goal of the state since 1985, even preceding the serious lobbying effort that began in 1988 to land the 2002 Games and succeeded in 1995.

"People don't remember the economy was pretty slow back then," said Dave Johnson, who headed a state office of sports development under former Gov. Norm Bangerter before joining Tom Welch and the Salt Lake Bid Committee in securing the Olympics for Utah. "Take out the federal government's investments in Utah and tourism is the largest industry. Look at the resources we have. . . . Salt Lake is ideal for sporting events, winter and summer."

The bid committee emphasized that point in getting the U.S. Olympic Committee to pick Salt Lake City as its candidate for the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics. Through the years, Johnson said, the state has showed that it can follow through, playing host to Olympic gymnastic trials, national cycling and volleyball championships, World Cup ski races and elite mountain bike competitions.

Natalie Gochnour, a state government economist in the Olympic run-up and now a Salt Lake Chamber vice president, agreed.

"There's no question we have aspired to promote outdoor recreation and professional sports for our community, which has a very active, recreation-minded populations and unparalleled access," she said.

Johnson figures the future is even brighter.

"It's not like this is a market that's tapped and has peaked out," he said. "We have a lot of facilities for a city our size, a great volunteer base and the infrastructure to support big events. And almost any sporting or outdoor activity finds a welcome home in Utah."

mikeg@sltrib.com