Victoria Falls Sports Tourism festival set for month-end

 

TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO

The Victoria Falls Sports Tourism festival has been r e s c h e d u l e d to kick-off on September 24 in the resort town in a bid to boost domestic tourism and revive businesses in the resort city.

It will run up to September 26.

The festival is being organised by Sports Tourism Incorporation in collaboration with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, Zim Bho# Zim Yami, vakatsha, ZimParks and the Sports and Recreation Commission.

The objective of the festival is to promote sports tourism, market brand Zimbabwe and create sustainable development for marginalised communities in resort towns.

The golf tournament coordinator, Ephraim Mashingaidze, said the event will help demystify the sport.

“The tournament is important for the sport code of golf in Zimbabwe because it is vital we continue to use such events to help demystify the sport. Golf will be played alongside other sports such as tennis, mountain biking, marathon and aerobics,” Mashingaidze told BT Sport.

He added: “The golf tournament alongside other cleared sport codes for this year dovetail into concrete

government initiatives to promote domestic local tourism and sporting activities especially in Zimbabwe’s prime tourism destinations.”

In 2014, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) was allocated land in the industrial area to build a 10 000-seater cricket stadium, which would have seen the country having a third Test ground to complement Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo and Harare Sports Club.

The project has remained a pipedream due to ZC’s financial constraints. Some investors have also expressed interest in constructing a motor racing and bringing a Grand Prix course in Victoria Falls.

Mashingaidze said the Sports Tourism concept is now a big product across the world.

“The Sports Tourism concept is now a big product across the world. Sports Tourism Inc, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, Sports and Recreation Commission and ZimParks are anchor partners to the brand.

There are also the business sectors, entrepreneurs, social golfers and other stakeholders who are partnering the sports festival.

“The hosting of such events in our prime tourism destinations lays bare the need for stakeholders to develop good sporting facilities in these areas,” he said.

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