Turkish Travel Agencies Association (TÜRSAB) Sports Specialization President Recep Şamil Yaşacan stated that the winter camp period depends on the course of the corona virus and said, “The arrival of the teams is all at the last minute. Certain places for the football camp in Antalya are full, reservations are better in certain places. There may be those who come at the last minute, it is shaped according to the pandemic,” he said.

The effect of the pandemic continues in Antalya, one of the most important sports camp destinations in the world and in Turkey. In the city, where the occupancy rate is high despite the pandemic, many teams make last-minute reservations. Football teams from countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Germany and Denmark come to the camp in the sector, which is more active than last year. Besides football, basketball, swimming and volleyball teams prefer to camp in the city lately.

“PANDEMIC DID NOT STOP SPORTS TOURISM”
Recep Şamil Yaşacan made statements about the camp period planned to be held in January, February and March. Yaşacan said that even the pandemic could not stop sports tourism, only slowing it down. Underlining that Antalya is one of the most suitable regions of the world and Turkey for sports camps, Yaşacan said, “There is a football season in Antalya right now. There are 200 football fields owned by the private sector. We have golf courses. There are teams such as canoeing, rugby, cycling, swimming, volleyball, basketball, judo, taekwondo. Antalya is currently a winter camp," he said.

"LAST MINUTE RESERVATIONS ARE MOSTLY"
Stating that it is difficult to predict the camps of football teams due to the pandemic, Yaşacan said, “Last minute reservations are in the majority right now. No one knows for sure whether there will be a shutdown in their country due to the pandemic or not. Teams of European, CIS countries currently have reservations, they say they will come. Even if there are not as many teams as before, there will be a camp period close to the past. We are not slow, but we are not very fast either. There are teams from countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Estonia, Lithuania, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechia, Slovenia, Poland. We also have teams from Switzerland, Germany, Denmark. But it's all last minute. Certain places for the football camp in Antalya are full, reservations are better in certain places. There may be those who come at the last minute, it is shaped according to the pandemic. We don't know what will happen," he said.

"PANDEMIC PROCESS AFFECTS US AS IT AFFECTS EVERYONE"
Talking about some of the teams that will come, Yaşacan said, “Teams such as Dynamo Kiev, Shaktar Donetsk, Dinamo Moscow and Red Star are coming. All the big teams from the open countries will come to our camp. The pandemic process affects us as well as everyone.”

"INDOOR GYM SUPPORT IS NEEDED"
Stating that Antalya provides advantages not only in terms of sports infrastructure but also accommodation, climate and transportation, Şamil Yaşacan said, “Canoe groups, basketball, volleyball and swimming teams come to the region. At this point, if the number of indoor sports halls increases, there will be more camp organizations. It would be better if 10 more large halls were built. Because the incoming teams want to play a training match with each other. It doesn't happen with a living room. Why are we number one in football? Because we have 200 fields. When many teams come, there are many matches. Teams prefer There should be competitions and tournaments in our region," he said.

"SPORTS TOURISM IS THE FACE OF OUR COUNTRY"
Emphasizing that sports tourism is very important for our country, Yaşacan said, "Sports tourism is the promotional face of our country. A famous player in the teams takes a selfie and shares it, what happens is promotion all over the world. Athletes take pictures in a sunny weather while it is snowing in their country. Sports tourism contributes to early booking. Seeing this post, he wants to have a holiday in Antalya, sports tourism has a strong promotional power.”

"OUR TEAM WILL NOT GO TO EUROPE FOR CAMPING IN 2-3 YEARS"
Noting that Turkish teams went to abroad camps in the past, Yaşacan said, “He used to go to camps in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Now we have summer camp facilities in Bolu, Erzurum, Isparta, Burdur and Afyonkarahisar. We competed against Austria and Switzerland in summer camps. No Turkish team will go to camp in Europe in the next 2-3 years. They will invite our Turkish teams to the tournaments there. They no longer have a chance to compete with us. If we establish our infrastructures, no country can compete with us in sports tourism. Our state already provides the necessary support, the private sector should work according to sports tourism when constructing a facility.