Marathon running organized as flood rehabilitation in Thai South

BANGKOK, June 2 (TNA) - The Ministry of Tourism and Sports will organize a marathon running event as a post-flood rehabilitation activity in Phattalung Province in the Thai South next month. Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul told journalists on June 1 that her ministry, in cooperation with the local private sector and civil society, will organize the one-day event near Thale Noi in Khuan Khanun District on July 23. Kobkarn explained Thale Noi is a lake accessible to the renowned Songkhla Lake in adjacent Songkhla Province that is surrounded by an ecological conservation wetland and also proclaimed the first Ramsar Site in Phattalung and in Thailand for its biodiversity charms, comprising of fleets of folk birds, water buffaloes and red lotuses. A Ramsar Site is based on the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. Kobkarn said the upcoming marathon running event is aimed not only to be a rehabilitation activity for local farmers who have been affected by recent floods, but also to promote the provincial tourism through a sport event. According to the minister, marathon runners and participating people will have their own touches on the natural charms of Thale Noi, as well as local cuisine, cultural folk music and performances. The minister revealed that the marathon running champion will receive a trophy made from saltmarsh bulrush, a local annual crop, projecting that the upcoming event should attract more than 2,000 marathon runners and other participants, earning Phattalung additionally provincial tourism-related revenues of at least 5 per cent, including those proceeds from selling the event-emblemed shirts and other souveniers. Phattalung has, meanwhile, attracted over 14 million international tourists during the first five months of this year, earning the province over 700 billion baht tourism-related revenues so far, a 2.67 per cent year-on-year increase. (TNA)