The second edition of the eco-healing marathon held on the weekend of February 14 to 15 has once more proven to be a success. The organizers are already gearing for next year’s Sunyang Eco-Healing Seychelles Marathon to be held February 28, 2010.
With its partner Sunyang Co. Ltd – a traditional ‘Soju’ (Korean Liquor) manufacturing company – this year the event witnessed a good turnout of marathoners from 15 different countries and to increase participation next year there will be a 10 km walk for fun.
„We would like to make the event more engaging for as many people as possible,“ says STB’s manager for events and product diversification, Selma Magnan, „and this will include getting more partners on board to make the weekend a success.“
According to Miss Magnan, the committee of the marathon has decided to have packages for marathoners from around the world drawn up with travel agencies and hotels and made available through the Seychelles.travel website.
„More promotions will be made so as to achieve our aim of improving the popularity of the event amongst the marathon community and their associates.“ She added.
The Marathon and the Korean Experience
The Sunyang Eco-Healing Seychelles Marathon is driven for the most part by the Seychelles Tourism Office in South Korea with the strong support of the Honorary Consul of Seychelles in Korea, Mr Dong Chang Jeong who was this year accompanied by the Chairman of Sunyang Co. Ltd, Mr Wung Rae CHO.
Some of the South Korean delegation joined Mr Jeong and Mr Wae in the run Sunday February 15.
„The South Korean runners along with the musicians have all expressed their satisfaction at this year’s marathon,“ says Julie Kim, Seychelles Tourist Officer, Korea. „They all enjoyed the weekend and are looking forward to coming back next year.“
Two activities complemented the Sunyang Eco-Healing Seychelles Marathon which will be maintained and enhanced next year to enrich the event.
On Valentine’s Day guests enjoyed the romance between Sunyang Co. Ltd. and Seychelles at the Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay’s Silhouette Lounge.
„There was an excellent turnout and we received great feedback from guests who enjoyed the blend of Creole and Korean food, Korean exhibition and Korean music,“ says Gerard Chan, Food and Beverage Manager, Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay.
„We plan to have a bigger gala next year where more guests can join. We are happy to have had partners like Mr Xavier Heinen who assisted with the supplies to create the Korean cuisine.“ Mr Chan added that Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay is aiming to make the Korean & Creole Culinary Fest a yearly event on the Hotel’s Event Calendar.
The South Korean professional musicians further added to the dinner ambiance by putting on a surprise musical performance for guests using traditional Korean instruments. The Korean artists were Mina Hong, Pyungwon Kwon, Misook Kim, Eunjoo Cho, and Minsoo Lee.
Along with Seychellois artists they put on a cross-cultural musical show after the Sunday run at the International Conference Centre in town. This included demonstrations of traditional Creole dance and guitar ensembles from the Seychelles School of Music together with a Korean music ensemble and various other Korean musical performances.
An enhanced enriching experience is also in the plans for 2010 and will include classical music, pop music, fashion show and exhibition.
Photo: The Korean musicians gave a surprising performance at Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay / Seychelles Tourism Board
