In addition to helping the island return to normal, the aim of the project is to stimulate the island’s economy, Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nongkhai explained at a meeting of the provincial sport committee yesterday (Aug 3).
The first of four sporting events to be held under the campaign is a Petanque Thailand Championships round for players aged over 55, to be held at the Phuket City Youth Center at Saphan Hin on Aug 15.
The second event will be the Toyota Gazoo Racing Motorsport 2020, to be held at Saphan Hin on Aug 21-23, V/Gov Supoj added.
The third event will be the Phuket Surfing Contest 2020, to be held at Kalim and Patong Sept 13-15, and the fourth event will be the Phukethon 2020 ‘New Normal’ edition.
The Phukethon marathon, this year marking its fourth edition under the banner ‘Return To Paradise’, will be held Nov 21-22, V/Gov Supoj said.
All events will be held under the COVID-19 protection measures issued by the Ministry of Public Health, he added.
Some 8,000 athletes from throughout the country are expected to join the Phuketthon, V/Gov Supoj noted.
“We will work with hotel owners and tour operators to create packages with special prices to attract athletes and their families to travel in Phuket for these events,” he explained.
“The Phuket Government will control every event to make sure they all strictly comply the health guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” he added.