Sports tourism supporter ‘positive’ about strategy
Events staged in Guernsey need to be of a high standard and well-organised if they are to attract visitors, said sports and events tourism advocate David Piesing.
Mr Piesing, a former cricket administrator, said he was passionate about such events. He thought Guernsey did them particularly well and should do more.
He was positive about the recognition of the opportunity in the new strategy from the Tourism Management Board.
‘My first impressions were positive and enthusiastic,’ he said.
The report included information about which applicants secured funding from the tourism product development fund.
Mr Piesing said many sports had already held events that brought enthusiasts to the island. He was pleased to see that the national Boatlife Fishing Championship would be coming here for two rounds as would the three-day British Isles DanceSport Championship.
It was important to put on high standard, well-organised events, he said. ‘It’s always been my view that we won’t easily get around the high cost of coming here and staying here,’ he said. ‘We have to offer quality events.
‘They don’t need to be big events. Yes, we can host the Island Games every 20 years but that’s a logistical giant of a thing to organise.'
He said ‘bite-sized’ events that did not stretch resources would be one solution, along with a co-ordinated approach so that several events were not on at the same time.
He said that there were parts of the report that he was not convinced about, ‘but in terms of events tourism I think it’s the right way to go'.
'I think we need to invest in it for the next two years or so. The report is certainly going in the right direction. We are where we are and progress is being made.’
