On a wing and a prayer
SIC hope for mass participation events to restart as soon as possible
PETALING JAYA: Marathon and Ironman are some of the mass participation sporting events that had stopped running due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
And a group of people under the banner of Sports Industry Coalition (SIC) are on a wing and a prayer for these sports to come alive again under strict standard operating procedures set by the National Security Council (MKN).
Lim Chong Ghee, the regional director of the World Endurance Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the owner and organisers of Ironman events in Malaysia, admitted those who run mass participating sports events had suffered massive financial losses since everything came to a standstill in March last year.
“It has been a tough time for all these events organisers. We are one of the forgotten groups as many sectors have received help,” said Chong Ghee.
“We tried to get financial aid and bring back these events but one or two voices are not heard. That’s why this year, we decided to form SIC.”
It was formed on March 18, 2021 and consists of 77 industry players which include event organisers, service providers as well as related manufacturers and suppliers who make up the members of the coalition.
Fortunately, after forming it, Chong Ghee and Co met up with Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican three weeks ago.
“He was very positive and we looked at various ways on how to restart these events under strict SOPs,” said Chong Ghee.
“We have come out with our proposals but we are waiting for some positive news from MKN since two weeks ago. Hopefully, we get to restart quickly.”
According to Chong Ghee, based on the survey conducted by SIC on its members, in 2020, over 90% of events were postponed or cancelled, resulting in an unprecedented economic loss of over 99% in revenue and a major reduction of 85% in total workforce .
Industry players were affected, with their earnings taking a nose dive to zero income since the beginning of the pandemic.
He pointed out that mass participation sporting events in 2019 had attracted over 4.2 million participants, including inbound travellers supporting the sports tourism sector, which contributed over RM1 billion in economic impact.
Many event organisers as well as state tourism rely on sports tourism as a source of income for their socio economy. In 2019, for example, Ironman Malaysia alone had generated more than 30 million which gave the tourism sector a much needed boost.
Chong Ghee and all his SIC members, are just hoping that the mass participation sporting events will be up and running again.