Report on workshop I: How can sport activities contribute to sustainable tourism growth?

Within tourism, the role of sport is taking an increasingly greater role. Professional sports require travelling of athletes and their accompanying teams for competition and training. Similarly recreational sports are carried out in many tourism destinations by visitors. Competitive sports is formal, rational, goal directed and provides or allows little opportunity for fantasy. On the other hand, recreational sport may be amusement and recreation, a pleasant time to play and enjoy (Kurtzman, 2001: 100). Many destinations develop specifically for sport recreational tourism as evidenced by the numerous ski resorts one finds in alpine areas, for example. At the same time they may also offer an infrastructure and base for professional athletic training. In some cases, sports activity (e.g hiking, tennis) may not be the main motive for visiting a destination, but is offered and consumed as additional supply in order to provide more of a the total tourism product and increase tourist spending in the destination.