Kota Kinabalu: Sabah is serving up a whole new ball game for holidaymakers, as the Playcation Sabah edition swaps sightseeing for pickleball, badminton and table tennis from Sept 17 – 20. “Playcation basically means let’s play ball when we are on holiday,” said organiser, Borneo Referral Group Founder cum Chief Executive Officer Dr Brandon Chin (pic).
“We want to see more people coming in, especially foreigners, to come to Sabah to enjoy this special exotic environment,” he said in his welcoming remarks at the Playcation@Sabah launching cum Gala Dinner, here, Saturday.
State Youth Development, Sports Advancement and Creative Economy Minister Datuk Nizam Abu Bakar Titingan officiated the ceremony.
Founded in Singapore, Playcation is a holiday built around active fun, recreational activities and hands-on experiences rather than passive sightseeing or resting. Its tagline is “play hard and party hard”.
The Playcation@Sabah edition features table tennis, badminton and pickleball around Kota Kinabalu. Organisers want to put Sabah on the sports tourism map.
“Sports can open the door to business. We can have business conferences and seminars in Kota Kinabalu, especially with our Sabah International Convention Centre. We can make use of our hotels and collaborate on business exhibitions,” Brandon said.
“When you play ball, you communicate with each other, and when you communicate with each other, trust is built. When trust is built, it is amazing how you can expand your business,” he said, adding that the Sabah edition drew more than 650 participants.
“I initially thought only 200 would turn up. But I never knew Sabahans can really play. I believe next year, when we have Playcation 2, we will have at least 1,000,” he said, adding that the initiative could bring people of all ages together.
“There is going to be an impact among the youths, among the middle-aged, among the older age. They can all come together, play ball and have healthy lifestyles,” he said.
Sports League Private Limited Singapore Playcation Founder Varadharajan Kumaravelu said every Playcation event is open only to amateur players.
“You do not have to worry about being a beginner, because all our events are for amateurs. We do not really allow the pro players to come in,” he said, pointing out that he and his team first came to Sabah about two and a half months ago and met Brandon.
“We immediately fell in love with the idea of bringing Playcation to Sabah and then there are the connections that he (Brandon) has and the way he pulled this whole thing together to make it a 650-player event.
“The venues here are amazing, the place is great, it is amazing for a vacation, so I would love to come back to Sabah as many times as possible,” he said.
