TALKING POINTS FOR MINISTER OF TOURISM, HON. EDMUND BARTLETT AT THE OFFICIAL PRESS LAUNCH FOR KINGSTON CITY RUN 2017 THE JAMAICA PEGASUS HOTEL, KINGSTON THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2017, AT 10 A.M.

SALUTATIONS:

·       Colleague Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia “Babsy” Grange

·       Mayor of Kingston, His Worship Councillor Delroy Williams

·       Director of Tourism, Mr. Paul Pennicook

·       Chairman, Kingston Chapter – Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), Mr. Christopher Jarrett

·       Senior Director, Commercial Development and Planning - ‎Airports Authority of Jamaica/Norman Manley International Airport, Mr. Alfred McDonald

·       Members of the Media

·       Ladies and Gentlemen, good morning... 

·       Marathons and races are becoming big business for countries across the globe as more and more amateur athletes seek out “runcations”.  That is, the growing experiential travel trend of combining the challenge of competitive racing with the thrill of a vacation.

·       It provides race participants, often with family and friends in tow, with the opportunity to experience foreign destinations and cultures in a most authentic way by interacting with the people, visiting attractions and eating the local food.

·       I am therefore more than delighted to be participating in the official launch of the 5^th Annual Kingston City Run, which has helped put Jamaica – and the nation’s Capital, in particular – on the map in a very distinctive way as more and more runners add this destination event to their race calendar.

·       The growing popularity of the Kingston City Run among local and international runners, from as far away as the United Kingdom and South Africa, augurs well for our Capital.  Particularly as we seek to raise Kingston’s profile as a tourist destination – especially for cultural/heritage tourism and sports tourism.

KINGSTON AS AN ATTRACTION

·       Kingston is the epicentre of the very attributes that have made Jamaica a strong and unique brand internationally – our reggae and dancehall music; our food, from world famous jerk to Jamaican patties; and the performance of our athletes, such as Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Frazer-Pryce. 

·       Then we have the additional pull of Kingston being designated a Creative City of Music by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the Blue and John Crow Mountains being designated as a World Heritage Site.  Both of these designations are strong selling points that will appeal to travellers with a special interest in culture.

·       And the proverbial icing on the cake is that the prestigious New York Times has designated Kingston as one of the top 52 Best Places to Go in 2017.

·       So you see, Kingston has many significant attributes that you can use to your advantage as you market the Kingston City Run to destination runners seeking a new and different experience.

CAPITALIZING ON SPORT TOURISM

·       As we continue to explore avenues to unlock tourism’s economic potential, we will be using sports events like these destination races to boost tourism numbers and promote economic activity.

·       Today people are travelling to pursue their passions; they want to satisfy a need, a desire. Sports events are a passion for many, including a lot of our visitors.

·       Sports Tourism is a multi-billion dollar international business and one of the fastest growing niche segments of the $4.5 trillion global travel and tourism industry.

·       In fact, Sports Tourism accounts for an astonishing US$600 billion or 10% of the international tourism market (Travel and Tourism Economic Impact 2015).

·       An estimated 12 million trips are made per year for sports tourism purposes (Tourism Insider 2011) and in some countries, sport can account for as much as 25% of all tourism receipts (UNWTO).

·       These are amazing figures that we should not ignore, especially as Sports Tourism is such a natural fit for Jamaica, given our positive international sporting image and our long established reputation as one of the best tourist destinations in the world.

·       We are taking decisive steps to capitalize on the vast potential that this viable market segment has to offer. Sports Tourism will have an integral role to play as we reposition Jamaica’s tourism to generate higher growth rates in both visitor arrivals and earnings.

·       Our targets are to:

§  Secure 5 million visitors by 2021

§  Generate US$ 5 billion in tourism earnings

§  Increase the total direct jobs to 125,000

§  15,000 new rooms.

·       Our newly formed Sports and Entertainment Network, which is chaired by entertainment producer and promoter Kamal Bankay, is leading this initiative and is currently developing innovative plans which will be rolled out in the coming months.

·       This is also an area that we are working on with my colleague Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange and her team.

CONCLUSION

·        Tourism and Sports are a powerful mix; truly a winning combination.  Kingston City Run provides this perfect synergy between sports and tourism and I commend the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association (JHTA), their partners and the team of volunteers for their great work in organizing this premier race event year after year.

·        I wish you a successful staging this year and for many years to come.

Thank you.