The European Union (EU) Delegation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives held its first Team Europe ‘BIOthlon’ from 24-25 June in Kalpitiya.
The event was organised to highlight Kalpitiya as a destination for sports tourism while celebrating it as one of Sri Lanka’s biodiversity hubs. The two-day event brought in over 35 participants including renowned Sri Lankan sports personalities, diplomats, youth from the local communities, and tourists.
Participants were given the opportunity to engage in five sports: running, swimming, cycling, kayaking, and kitesurfing. The event was funded by the EU and organised by G360 and Kitesurfing Lanka.
The five sports activities were located in biodiversity hotspots around Kalpitiya and included volunteers, participants, and spectators from the local community.
“The Team Europe BIOthlon is the EU’s way of celebrating Sri Lanka’s rich biodiversity and also encouraging local and foreign tourists to visit Kalpitiya to experience its beauty, hospitality, and unique activities like kitesurfing,” said EU Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Denis Chaibi, who also participated in the sports activities himself.
Nine renowned Sri Lankan athletes and Olympians participated in the event, including Sriyani Kulawansa, Sugath Thilakaratne, Nimmi de Zoysa, Julian Bolling, Haris Omar, Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, Praneeth Udumalagala, Jehan Mubarak, and Dilsiri Welikala.
“This experience has been very unique and enlightening,” said former Olympic swimmer Julian Bolling. “Not only did we enjoy participating in the sports in a friendly, non-competitive atmosphere, we also saw the potential of sports tourism in Sri Lanka.”
Kalpitiya is also one of the sites supported by the EU-funded Community Livelihood and Biodiversity Recovery (COLIBRI) project, which aims to preserve and restore biodiversity clusters in Sri Lanka while supporting the livelihoods of surrounding communities. The project was implemented by ACTED Sri Lanka.
In-between activities, participants were also given the opportunity to see the Wilpattu National Park and the impact of the GIZ’s support in that area.
Convened under the spirit of Team Europe, the BIOthlon is an important part of the EU’s ongoing efforts to promote regenerative, sustainable tourism in Sri Lanka and bring visibility to rich biodiversity and tourism hotspots on the island.