At a press conference on Monday, NTA General Secretary Deepraj Gurung said the event will see participation of 15-20 countries including players from almost all countries in the South Asia region. [break]
The three-day event will feature eight weight categories in men´s and six weight categories in women´s sections. According to Gurung, a couple of weight categories have been excluded as there are no women player available for the higher weight categories. One player from Nepal will participate in each weight category.
"The event is officially recognized by the World Taekwondo Federation and the players holding dan certificate from WTA Headquarters will be eligible to participate in the championship," stated Gurung.
The contenders will vie for 14 gold and sliver medals and 28 bronze medals. The organizers have expected the participation of more than 250 players.
"The expected cost to organise the event is Rs 23.4 million. So, we are looking for sponsors and advertisers," shared Gurung.
Speaking on the occasion, National Sports Council (NSC) Member-Secretary Yubaraj Lama said the fusion between tourism and sports will spread positive message and other sports should also learn from this experiment. "NSC is ready for all kinds of support for the event," Lama said.
Prachandaman Shrestha, CEO of Nepal Tourism Board, said he believes September will be the month ´of highlights´ for Nepal Tourism Year (NTY) 2011.
Thamel Tourism Development Council President Tajendra Shrestha, NTY 2011 Coordinator Yogendra Shakya, President of the Organizing Committee Sanjiv Regmi, Championship Coordinator Deepak Bista and member Deepak Thapa also spoke on the occasion.
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