Turkish resorts have a sporting chance in post-pandemic period

ANKARA－Turkey is promoting its Mediterranean resorts and athlete-friendly facilities in a campaign for sports tourism, a branch of the vital industry, which is expected to rebound after the pandemic.

Tourism revenues are crucial to Turkey's economy. The industry has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, shrinking by more than 70 percent in 2020, according to official data.

Industry operators expressed hope that with the launch of vaccinations across the world－and in Turkey with China's Sinovac vaccine－the sector will rebound in the second half of 2021.

The southern province of Antalya, hailed as Turkey's tourism capital, has become a magnet for international sports clubs during the past few years. This is thanks to an investment made in new facilities, said Recep Samil Yasacan, chairman of the country's Sports Tourism Association. "Reservations are already increasing for January, February and March from football clubs which want to practice in Antalya," he said in a phone interview.

The warm climate, strong infrastructure and ideal location have made Antalya a preferred destination among sports clubs. The Turkish province, which has dozens of resorts, attracts many football clubs, especially during the clubs' winter-training sessions.

Chinese football clubs have also chosen the namesake provincial capital city and its surroundings in the past, Yasacan said.

"We have reservations for this year from Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Serbia, Croatia and Romania," Yasacan said.

He noted other European nations will be on the list once their flight bans on Turkey are lifted.

But everything depends on how the global health situation will evolve, he cautioned.

Turkey has seen a significant drop in daily COVID-19 cases in the past few days thanks to weekend curfews and restrictions. Its national vaccination program is due to start later this month with medical professionals given priority.

Turkey ended a four-day nationwide curfew that had banned New Year celebrations. More curfew measures are expected to continue on weekends until further notice.

"We are pinning a lot of hope on vaccines and believe they will successfully work on people who will return to our well-equipped and hygienic facilities, which are ready and willing to host our guests," Yasacan said.

Ozgur Cetin is a sales operator of a tourist agency specializing in sports and health tourism in the capital Ankara. He said calls from European countries have increased, especially in recent weeks, to inquire about tennis camps and facilities in Antalya.

"Antalya city has one of the highest number of courts in the world, as far as I know," he said, adding there are nearly 2,000 tennis courts in the city and several big tournaments were organized there in the past.

Xinhua