THE City of Naga is aiming to capture a bigger slice of the sports tourism pie.
The city’s hefty investment in sports facilities built in the past years and its hosting of athletic competitions in the region prompted the City to capitalize on sports tourism, said Jessica Natad, information and economic and investment promotions officer.
Natad said the City will develop sports tour packages where companies or groups can use the City’s sports facilities for team-building activities. This package will also be tied up to the city’s other existing tourism products like cultural, heritage and eco-tourism.
Among Naga’s sports tourism facilities include the Teodoro “Doring” Mendiola Sports Oval. It also has a world-class tennis court, an eight-lane swimming pool, badminton court, basketball courts, volleyball courts and football field, all in walking distance from each other.
u200b“We are pursuing sports tourism, not only because this is a road taken by a few local government units (LGU), but also because sports allows us to help develop our youth by instilling in them discipline and the importance of physical and mental health and wellness,” said Natad in a statement.
She added that sports development is in the forefront of Mayor Kristine Vanessa Chiong’s 10-point socio-economic agenda.
While the City’s sports tourism position has not fully taken off, Naga is already a popular destination for sports activities. Natad said this month, the Court of Appeals will have its team-building activity in the city while the Department of Education has chosen the Naga to be the sports-training center for teachers in the Visayas.
u200bNaga also hosted the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) meet twice in a row in 2016 and 2017. This is the first time in the history of the CVIRAA meet that the event was held in the same venue for two consecutive years.
u200bThe CVIRAA Meet brought to the city more than 7,000 delegates composed of students, teachers and parents from all over Region 7 for a whole week.