Skip to main content

Sportcheck:Sports development benefits economy of nation

NO effort must be spared to develop sports as it is an industry by itself which contributes to the economy as well as provide jobs for Malaysians.

The Sports Ministry, the Domestic Trade and Industries Ministry and the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) should spearhead the move, which should start with the establishment of a blueprint.

Malaysian Association for Physical Education, Sports Science and Fitness (MAPESSF) president, Professor Datuk Dr Leonard A de Vries said this was first discussed 10 years ago.

"A working paper entitled Economic impact of sports in Malaysia was approved by the Sports Ministry 10 years ago. However, this has yet to be implemented," said de Vries.

However, for sports to succeed, there has to first be a sports culture.
"This can be achieved through seminars to create awareness. It is also very important to ensure the infrastructure and facilities are adequate. Also, if the sports industry is to expand, then there must be more emphasis given to sports for all and less to high performance sports from the government and private sector," he said.

He said the manufacturing sector of sports, fitness and recreation should be studied and developed in Malaysia which would improve made-in-Malaysia products which could then compete in foreign markets.

Sports tourism is another major sports industry.

"The Tourism Ministry, with the cooperation of the Sports Ministry, Olympic Council of Malaysia and MAPESSF, should establish a Sports Tourism Administrative Unit for the growth of sports tourism.

"Malaysia should position outdoor recreation in our natural environment as our niche market. A study to develop the outdoor recreation industry by mapping locations for walking, cycling, hiking, climbing and camping sites, including sites for water sports, fitness, health, martial arts and X-games must also be conducted."

De Vries said government linked companies (GLCs) must play a bigger role in promoting sports as in time, the returns will be there.

"A corporate approach to sports development will bring positive changes to the way sports are managed and developed."

De Vries added that existing duties and excise on sports goods should be reduced as it would encourage greater participation in sports and contribute to the development of a sports culture.

NST
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Malaysian junior athletes are just too ‘lembik’

Saya setuju. We are working on more coaches! “ @ManOlimpik : Malaysian junior athletes are just too ‘lembik’ http://t.co/7D7wmHWaNy ” — Khairy Jamaluddin (@Khairykj) June 10, 2014 The benchmark. Can our junior athletes train as hard as Malaysia's world No.1 badminton player, Lee Chong Wei? “IT IS okay lah. The training is not too bad lah. I will try lah … Wah, so hard lah today.” These are some of the common statements I hear from our juniors nowadays. It is not only in badminton. It is the easy-going, laid-back attitude and lack of competitiveness at grassroots level that we have problems producing quality players. I have travelled quite a bit. After ending my decade-long career with the national team, I went to play in the league in Europe. It’s different there. The European athletes know what they want. And they do it with real focus. Even the young ones possess admirable self-control and show a high level of commitment. During my time in the ...
12 comments
Read more

Organising Major Sports Events Can Inspire Sports Culture Among The People - Khairy

PUTRAJAYA, June 5 (Bernama) -- Organising major sports events can help inspire sports culture among the people and ensure a healthy lifestyle said Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. Khairy said the Tour of Malaysia cycling race organised since 1963, for example, can encourage more people to take the sport in a more competitive way or just for recreation purposes. "A study carried out by a world renown medical journal, The Lancet, revealed that 61 percent of adults in Malaysia do not engage themselves in active sports. "A study by the Health Ministry revealed that only 25 percent of Malaysians exercise," he said in his speech when launching the 2013 Tour of Malaysia (Jelajah Malaysia) at the Youth and Sports Ministry, here, Wednesday. "Cycling, though not as popular here as in countries like Denmark, the activity is becoming popular among the people as can be seen through an increase in sale of bicycles for recreation," he sa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Badminton: Fans rooting for all-Malaysian semis

Reports: RAJES PAUL KUALA LUMPUR: The home fans will be rooting for an all-Malaysian men’s singles semi-final between Lee Chong Wei and Liew Daren. But Chong Wei is more fancied to advance than Daren in quarter-final matches against Indonesian Simon Santoso and Dane Peter Gade-Christensen respectively at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil today. Yesterday, Chong Wei defeated Vietnamese Nguyen Tien Minh 21-9, 18-21, 21-7 in a second-round match that saw the world number one struggling to adapt to the draught in the stadium in the second game. And Daren continued a fairy tale run in his home Open, blowing away a toothless Hsueh Hsuan-yi of Taiwan 21-14, 21-12. Although Choong Wei had to slog for the win over Tien Minh, the top seed and defending champion felt that he was playing better by the day. “I got off to a good start but found it hard to cope with the draught. I tried to catch up after losing my momentum but that did not happen and I decided to conserve energy for ...
11 comments
Read more