The Region 4 southern qualification round for the 39th edition of the National Youth Games, to be held in Ratchaburi next year, starts tomorrow and runs until Nov 19.
A delegation of 475 people representing Phuket will be competing, including 201 male athletes, 174 female athletes and 95 coaches and officials.
The athletes will be contesting across a total of 30 different sports, officials confirmed at yesterday’s ceremony held at Provincial Hall.
Additionally, once the National Youth Games have concluded, athletes will be competing in the Region 4 southern qualifier of the “100 Islands Games”, also being held in Surat Thai, between Nov 20-29.
For this event, which caters specifically for senior athletes, Phuket will be sending a team of 200 people, comprising 137 male athletes, 38 female athletes and 25 coaches and officials. The athletes will be contesting across 10 separate sports.
Both competitions will determine which athletes qualify for the National tournaments; the 39th National Youth Games, otherwise known as the “Ratchaburi Games”, will take place between Mar 21-31 next year, while the 6th edition of the “100 Island Games” is scheduled for Apr 19-26, also in Ratchaburi Province.
Thammawat Wongcharoenyot, President of the Phuket Sports Association, led the athletes and staff to the ceremony and was joined by Prachan Pachantabutr, Vice President of the Sports Association, Warin Khaothong, Secretary-General of the Association, and Damrong Chaisena, Director of the Phuket office of the Provincial Sports Authority of Thailand Office.
As part of the ceremony, Governor Sophon extended his best wishes and encouragement to all the athletes to compete in the best spirit possible in the hope of achieving success, while congratulating them on their representing the province.
Governor Sophon also confirmed that financial support for the athletes to the tune of B100,000 had been donated by private sector entities, without disclosing any specific details on who the entities are. This act of generosity had been done to help boost the morale of the squads, he added.
At the 38th National Youth Games held in Nakhon Sawan between Mar 25 and Apr 3 this year, Phuket athletes won 10 gold medals, 12 silver medals and 18 bronze medals to rank 17th nationally and fourth in the southern region.
Similarly, in the 5th Senior Sports Competition known as the “Sontawan Games”, held between Apr 20-28 in Nakhon Sawan Province, athletes representing Phuket won 11 gold medals, 12 silver medals and 11 bronze medals to rank 20th nationally and 5th in the southern region.
The Phuket Sports Association concluded yesterday’s ceremony by encouraging all residents of Phuket to support all athletes and coaching staff ahead of the two upcoming competitions.