Yala’s ‘Amazean Jungle Trail’ officially added to UTMB World Series
The popular trail running event, “Amazean Jungle Trail”, in Betong district of Yala province has been officially added to the UTMB World Series as one of 25 trail-running events in 16 countries across the world, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports announced on Tuesday.
The event was held from May 6-8 at Betong Mongkhonrit Tunnel and covers three race distances: Betong 100K, Betong 50K and Betong 25K. The event aims to promote the image of Betong city and develop it into a sport destination at the international level, using beautiful nature trails as soft power to attract tourists and running enthusiasts.
“Amazean Jungle Trail was added to the UTMB World Series after its outstanding success this year,” said Minister of Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn. “Next year, the event will be called “Amazean Jungle Thailand by UTMB,” and become the second UTMB trail-running event in Thailand after the Doi Inthanon Thailand by UTMB in Chiang Mai province.”
Phiphat said he expected the event in the coming years to bring in trail runners and spectators from around the world to witness the beauty of Betong, which will help boost tourism and the local economy in the southern province of Yala, as well as nearby border provinces.
He added that the success of the event on May 6-8, which saw over a thousand runners from 14 countries, was a result of cooperation between his ministry and several agencies including the Interior, Natural Resources and Environment, Culture, Transport and Foreign Affairs ministries, as well as private partners in Yala province.
Apart from trail running, the Amazean Jungle Trail also features other activities that all family members could enjoy, such as traditional bow competition, Betong food festival, and light and sound shows.
The ministry estimates that the event generated around THB140 million income to local communities.
