Butler County is one of two locations under consideration for a mini Olympics-style tournament for police and firefighters in five years.

Officials from the biennial Can-Am Police-Fire Games began touring the county this past weekend, spending four days checking out various sports and outdoor venues — from Slippery Rock University to Moraine State Park and Historic Pullman Park — to determine if the region would be an ideal place to host the 2024 games.

Spoiler alert: It would be a great spot for the competition.

Butler County submitted one of seven proposals for the games, outlining locales in its communities where the event could be held.

After officials tour both locations being considered — Savannah, Ga., is the other — a decision will be announced at a Las Vegas event in November.

If chosen, Butler County would be the second Pennsylvania community to host the games. York County provided space for Can-Am five years ago.

Bill Merrylees, Can-Am’s president and CEO, said the decision would be based on which location would provide the best experience for the tournament’s athletes. “If we get a sense that this is a really great place to visit, and it can support what we need, that’s what we’ll do,” he said.

Lynn Hillman, U.S. president for the games, said that regions of Butler County’s size often are good hosts because of the high amount of police and firefighters within driving distance. And Jack Cohen, president of the county’s Tourism and Convention Bureau, said the large number of facilities in the county would be accommodating for the games.

Much to the credit of the tourism bureau and other area leaders, Butler County has been attracting more tourism-boosting events — from the Italian Festival downtown to the Penguins practice games in Cranberry Township — in recent years while long-standing annual events — such as the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival, Moraine State Park Regatta, Butler Farm Show, Big Butler Fair and North Washington Rodeo, known as the largest east of the Mississippi — have continued to draw large crowds.

The Can-Am games — which bring more than 1,000 competitors with them — would also be great for the county. Local businesses would certainly benefit from the influx of people participating in and watching the games.

We hope that Can-Am’s visiting board members see what the rest of the county already knows. Butler County is a great place to visit, and would be an ideal spot for the 2024 games.