Cyprus Deputy Minister for Tourism Costas Koumis has highlighted the multiplying benefits of Sport on the island’s tourist product.

Koumis attended yesterday the 1st “Petrolina” international water polo tournament in Larnaca.

“This is a sport which is not particularly developed in our country despite that it has been considered as an Olympic sport since the beginning of the twentieth century and despite that this discipline is compatible with what Cyprus has to offer as a destination”, he told CNA.

Koumis said that the water polo is not developed because Cyprus did not have the necessary infrastructure for these sports, noting that even today the infrastructure presents weaknesses and deficiencies.

What I would personally keep, he added, is that this event highlights once more that multiplying benefits for tourism could emerge from sport. In the specific case tourist inflow is attracted from a country which tourist-wise has never received the due attention and I refer to Greece.

Furthermore, Koumis said that Larnaca is being upgraded constantly and during the last years has hosted international sport events, ripping the benefits as a tourist destination.