SIBU: The Sibu International BASE Jump, which has attracted 34 jumpers from 14 countries so far, is growing in popularity, said Dudong Assemblyman Datuk Tiong Thai King
“The event, which is into its tenth year, is very spectacular. In fact, some of the jumpers have told me that the open space at Sibu Town Square Phase 1 is one of the best sites in the world for BASE jumping.
“There are also people watching the event as opposed to some places, where jumpers make their jumps in remote places without any spectator,” Tiong, who is also Sibu Municipal Council Chairman, told reporters at the event welcoming dinner on Thursday.
According to him, the prestigious event has the capability to attract international tourists to visit Sibu as Sibu is the only division in Sarawak that organised such extreme sports event, which held annually since 2009.
“Sibu International BASE Jump is one of the major tourism events of Sibu. This extreme sports event is highly anticipated by the locals every year.
“They are just as excited and thrilled to witness the BASE jumpers, jumping from the state’s tallest building, the 126m tall Wisma Sanyan,” he added.
At the event, Tiong also emphasised on the Visit Sarawak campaign which will be held next year.
“Our state government has embarked on Visit Sarawak campaign with the objective to position Sarawak as the preferred destination.
“Visit Sarawak campaign will include branding exercise to enhance the state’s image as an attractive destination for holiday business and investment,” he said.
According to him, this campaign is to increase tourist arrivals by 15 to 18 percent and to increase their average length of stay from five days to a week and subsequently to increase tourism revenues for the state.
Apart from that, he said the international event can also help to enhance Sibu tourism as well as the state’s central zone.
“It is definitely in line with our state government’s direction in promoting tourism to the international level. Therefore, it is hope that this event will further add value to the tourism industry of Sarawak in general and Sibu in particular.
“In view of this, I hope our Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports can find ways to increase the number of flights with Sibu as destination so that Sibu can receive more international and local visitors every year.
“I also hope that more international events can be held in Sibu so that Sibu can become a popular destination for people all over the world,” he explained.
