JPSA Pro Surfers Competition- November 24th, 2004 The roaring waves and the sun drenched
beaches of Hikkaduwa will once again provide the backdrop
for SriLankan Airlines - JPSA Pro Surfers Competition which
is scheduled to be held from the 26th of November to the 1st
of December.
With 97 participants, this will be the fourth occasion SriLankan
Airlines is hosting a JPSA (Japan Professional Surfers Association)
tournament. The airline will conduct two separate contests
this year - All Japan Pro Surf Cup and SriLankan Pro Surf
Cup, making it more interesting and giving local participants
an opportunity to compete at an international surf contest.
The airline will be awarding the prize money of three million
Japanese Yen in total, provide a comprehensive tournament
package which includes air tickets, hotel accommodation, meals
and transport; and host the awards ceremony. Logistics and
technical support for the event is provided by Lanka Sportreizen
while the ground handling is done by Lion Royal.
The JPSA has 10 ranking competitions in its annual sporting
calendar – 6 long board and 4 short board. All the contests
are conducted in Japan, save for one short board competition
held in Bali, Indonesia and one long board competition held
in Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka.
SriLankan Airlines won the rights to hold the prestigious JPSA
Pro Surf Competition in Sri Lanka, in an exhibition event
held in Hikkaduwa in 2001. A panel of judges from JPSA and
38 Japanese professional surfers deemed the beaches of the
south western coast of Sri Lanka to be exceptionally suited
for long board surfing and the infrastructure suitable to
hold one of their 10 championship ranking tournaments.
Currently there are about 800 to 900 surfers coming to Sri
Lanka from Japan. The majority of these surfers head to Hikkaduwa,
while some travel across to the other side of the island to
Arugambay. SriLankan Airlines Country manager in Japan, Kaushal
Seneviratne stated, “Sri Lanka has the distinction of
being the only other country where JPSA ranking events are
held. We hope hosting this event in Sri Lanka will bring in
more Japanese tourists throughout the year, and establish
Sri Lanka as an alternative surfing destination to Bali and
Hawaii.”
The director JPSA, Mr Jun Kitahara said, “I am very
happy we can have the JPSA long board event in Sri Lanka,
and appreciate the corporation from SriLankan Airlines. I
feel that Sri Lanka is already getting to be famous as a good
surfing destination. I am sure it will be another successful
tournament like last year, where we as JPSA and all participants
enjoyed the hospitality of SriLankan Airlines and
Sri Lanka.”
As the national carrier and top promoter of tourism into Sri
Lanka, SriLankan Airlines is in the forefront of promoting
sports tourism in the country. The airline sees a tremendous
potential for sporting activities that would attract a different
kind of tourist from the traditional sun and sand seekers.
In June this year, the airline sponsored the British Pro Surfers
Association’s (BPSA) annual surf competition in Arugambay, titled SriLankan Airlines Champion of the Champions BPSA
Surf Contest.
Surrounded by the waters of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka is
also a land of rivers and lakes and water sports is being promoted
in a big way by inbound tour operators. Tour operators who
work in niche markets promote adventure tours like white water
rafting, canoeing and diving.
The SriLankan Airlines Golf Classic is an important event
in the airline’s sports calendar, which sees about 225
golfers from all over the world attending the tournament.
It was held this year for the 9th consecutive time.
The airline is also a title sponsor of the Singer SriLankan
Airlines Rugby Sevens fashioned on the lines of the world
famous Hong Kong Sevens, which draws over twenty rugby teams
from all over the world for a week long tournament.
