Mauritius Royal Raid event a boost for tourism

The annual Royal Raid event held in Mauritius has gained in popularity over the years with more and more people taking part in the race, among them, two mountain-climbing world champions.

The annual Royal Raid event held in Mauritius has gained in popularity over the years with more and more people taking part in the race, among them, two mountain-climbing world champions. The Royal Raid was held this Saturday, May 11, 2013, in the southwest of Mauritius. More than 600 participants registered for the 3 great races of this day: 80 km, 35 km, and the Gecko Raid (15 km). On May 11, the departure for the 80 km and 15 km was given. At 5 am, all the participants for the 80 km aligned at the Casela Bird Park while the departure for the 15 km was held at 8 am at Watook Plaine Champagne. On the following day, the other participants prepared themselves for the 35 km which took place at the Jet Ranch at 7 am.

This year, the Royal Raid which was rebranded to Lux*RoyalRaid, saw the participation of Iker Karerra (Salomon Team International) who figures among the top 8 world champions in mountain climbing. He won several first-class trophies in great competitions like le Trail des Citadelles in 2011, Annecy ultra Trail in 2011, and Ultra Trail de Rialp in 2010, etc. Nerea Martinez was also in Mauritius for that promising competition. She is a member of the Team Salomon International and the winner of the Andora Trail in 2012 and the UTMF (Ultra Trail du Mt Fuji) 2012. This mountain climbing veteran was very happy to be in Mauritius and participated in the Lux*RoyalRaid for the first time. She hoped that through her participation to this race, she would be able to help promote the activities proposed in Mauritius, other than Mauritius: sea, sand, sun, known to her compatriots.

During the RoyalRaid Press conference, within the premises of the MTPA, the Director of the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA), Dr. Karl Mootoosamy, highlighted the importance of holding these sporting events in the destination. These competitions put forward the Mauritian expertise in organizing big competitions. During international tourism fairs, these could be very good references and help promote the eco-tourism activities of the island which attract more and more tourists nowadays.

The MTPA gave its full support to the organization of the RoyalRaid, together with the support of Lux* Island Resorts Ltd. & Tamassa, Vital & Pepsi (Quality Beverages), Epic Sports/Lafuma et FIT for Life, Team Salomon Reunion, Swan Insurance ,and Anglo-Mauritius Assurance, among others. The organizing committee wishes to thank all those who contributed to make this event a reality.

Mauritius is a founding member of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) .

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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