National —
On October 2nd, 2023, Mr. Phatthana Bunsawat, Secretary of the Windsurfing Association of Thailand, Mr. Poramese Ngampiches, Mayor of Pattaya City, Thai national windsurfer athletes, and their coaches paid a visit to the King Taksin Monument at Pattaya City Hall for auspicious purposes.
In total, three medal-winning windsurfers from the 19th Asian Games in China, Natthaphong Phonopparat in the RS:X Men, Siriporn Kaewduang-Ngam in the RS:X Women, and Aticha Homraruen in the IQFoil Women were honored and celebrated for creating fame for Thailand and bringing happiness to its people. Mr. Poramese gave heartful praise to the athletes and further stated that it will enhance Pattaya city’s reputation as a Sports City and for Sports Tourism.
Pattaya City also holds the Pattaya International Windsurfing Championships and related events annually with many participants from around the world.
Mr. Phatthana praised Thai national windsurfer athletes because they performed outstandingly, it was their first gold medal in 25 years, since the Asian Games in 1998 in Thailand. In the future, they will participate in competitions in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China, and Okinawa, Japan before preparing for the Olympic games next year.
However, the association still lacks appropriate budget support from the Thai government. Mr. Phatthana hopes that an appropriate budget would greatly encourage and support athletes for further competitions.
