Sports Authority Closing All Stores

• By DEB BELT (Patch Staff)

Sports Authority is closing all 450 of its stores nationwide, including all 10 locations throughout Maryland. Liquidation sales are expected to begin as soon as next week.

The company filed for bankruptcy in March and at that point announced it would close 140 stores. Closing sales have already begun at some stores, including the Fredericksburg location in Central Park.

The company reportedly had hoped to simply close some of its underperforming stores and reorganize its business.

Nationwide, the chain has 14,500 full- and part-time employees.

But earlier this week, the company announced it had failed to find a buyer for its stores, according to CNN Money. In a bankruptcy auction on Monday, a consortium of liquidators including Tiger Capital Group, Hilco Global and Gordon Brothers purchased the retailer's merchandise and other inventory and plans to sell everything off, according to The Coloradoan.

Sports Authority was at one time the nation's largest sporting good retailer. Now, going-out-of-business sales could begin as soon as May 25, according to the AJC.

Here is a list of Sports Authority's locations in Virginia:

• Potomac Yards, 3701 Jefferson Davis Hwy, Alexandria
• Fairfax, 13031 Fair Lakes Shopping Center, Fairfax
• Fredericksburg, 1461 Carl D Silver Pkwy, Fredericksburg
• Gainesville, 5085 Wellington Rd, Gainesville
• Hampton Roads, 2106 Coliseum Dr, Hampton
• Norfolk, 5900 E Virginia Beach Blvd, Norfolk
• Sterling, 21070 Southbank St, Sterling
• Tysons Corner, 8355 Leesburg Pike, Vienna
• Virginia Beach, 2720 North Mall Dr, Virginia Beach