Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Dr. Memduh Büyükkılıç met with members of the mainstream and local media at the SNX Turkey FIM World Snowmobile Championship Introduction Meeting at the Erciyes Ski Resort.
Erciyes, Turkey’s largest ski resort and the flagship of winter sports, will host the 2025 World Snowmobile Championship for the second time. While the World Snowmobile Championship, which took place in Erciyes last year, reached 850 million people through television, the internet and social media, this year’s championship will spread to 86 countries. This year’s championship will take place on March 15-16, 2025, and 13 athletes, both men and women, from 32 countries have registered so far. Dozens of snowmobile athletes from many countries, including Finland, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Estonia, Russia, Canada and the USA, will participate in the championship, where registrations are ongoing and it is anticipated that the number of participants will increase in the coming days.
The FIM World Snowmobile Championship (SNX Snowcross World Championship), one of the most important championships in the world for Turkey to stand out in promotion and sports tourism, was held at the Erciyes Snowman Facilities. In addition to Mayor Büyükkılıç, Kayseri Governor Gökmen Çiçek, AK Party Kayseri Deputy Murat Cahid Cıngı, Turkish Motorcycle Federation Vice President Mahmut Nedim Akülke, Provincial Culture and Tourism Director Şükrü Dursun, Provincial Director of Youth and Sports Ali İhsan Kabakcı, Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality Secretary General Hüseyin Beyhan, Assistant Secretaries General, Erciyes Inc. Board Chairman Hamdi Elcuman, Erciyes Inc. General Manager Zafer Akşehirlioğlu and members of the press attended the FIM World Snowmobile Championship Introduction Meeting.
After a moment of silence and the reading of the National Anthem, the promotional video of Erciyes, images from last year's races and media coverage from around the world and Turkey were shown.
“As of now, we have exceeded 2 million visitors. A safe center”
Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Dr. Memduh Büyükkılıç, who was invited to the podium at the introductory meeting, started his speech by stating that Kayseri is remembered with Erciyes and said, “Our love, our passion is our Kayseri.” Mayor Büyükkılıç said, “As of now, we have exceeded 2 million visitors. The occupancy rate of our hotels is one hundred percent. It is a safe center,” and thanked those who contributed, especially AK Party Kayseri Deputy Murat Cahid Cıngı, who was the manager of Erciyes A.Ş. at the time.
Büyükkılıç Emphasized That They Are Striving to Offer Erciyes to the Service of the World
Büyükkılıç, who emphasized that Erciyes has many certificates, said, “It is not enough to say that we are a ski resort at international standards. Of course, it was important and meaningful for us to have this crowned and certified by accredited institutions. We are a safe ski resort. The sun does not always meet the sea, when you look outside the sun is bright and can meet the snow.” Expressing that they are trying to put Erciyes into the service of the world in his speech, Mayor Büyükkılıç also pointed out that Erciyes is a water source for the city.
“Hopefully, next season we will be talking about an Erciyes Ski Resort that also has thermal facilities.”
President Büyükkılıç added that they acted with the understanding of evaluating the resources of Turkey and Kayseri in the best way and expressed that they added the High Altitude Camp Center to Erciyes Ski Center in this direction. Also sharing that they were not satisfied with this, Büyükkılıç said, “This was not enough. This time we said let's bring Erciyes together with thermal. With the work we have done in that direction, hopefully we will talk about an Erciyes Ski Center that has also met with thermal next season. There is no stopping, we will continue to provide the best services from service to service, from quality to quality and to humanity.”
Thanks from Büyükkılıç to Governor Çiçek
Büyükkılıç thanked Governor Gökmen Çiçek for working hand in hand with them in solidarity, focusing on tourism and the city's problems, and expressed his prayers, saying, "We need to act with the understanding of protecting our city with a sense of belonging. In that respect, we love you very much, we pray for our administrators. With this understanding, we say that this beautiful city will continue to be put into the service of humanity."
“I Believe It Will Probably Exceed Billion This Year”
In his speech, President Büyükkılıç reminded that the second SNX Turkey FIM World Snowmobile Championship will be held and said, “You are also following the diversity of the competition. However, I believe that the competition, which will be held for the second time professionally, will hopefully be more professional and more productive than last year. Because if last year, despite being the first, made such a big impact and this positive sharing about our city reached 850 million people, I believe that it will probably exceed a billion this year,” and thanked the press members who were instrumental in promoting the city and Erciyes with this understanding. At the end of his speech, President Büyükkılıç also commemorated the former president of the Turkish Motorcycle Federation, Bekir Uçar, who passed away and prayed for God’s mercy.
“This City Deserves to Explain and Introduce Itself”
Kayseri Governor Gökmen Çiçek described Kayseri as another beautiful city and said, “This city more than deserves to be told and introduced.” Emphasizing that the SNX Turkey FIM World Snowmobile Championship was held for the first time in Kayseri under the auspices of the Presidency and with the patronage and support of the Metropolitan Municipality, Governor Çiçek stated that televisions shared that ‘such a championship was held in Erciyes, the largest, most equipped and most planned ski resort in Turkey.’ Expressing that the High Altitude Camp Center was also built in addition to the Erciyes Ski Resort, Çiçek thanked Mayor Büyükkılıç for his efforts.
Governor Çiçek congratulates Büyükkılıç for Kayseri's extensive coverage in the national press
Assessing that the championship is important for Kayseri, Governor Çiçek emphasized that both Erciyes and Kayseri received a lot of coverage in the national press thanks to the work of the Metropolitan Municipality and shared his congratulations and applause for Mayor Büyükkılıç.
AK Party Kayseri Deputy Murat Cahid Cıngı explained the past process of Erciyes Ski Center and stated that they are trying to organize events that will be held for the first time in Turkey in Erciyes. Deputy Cıngı emphasized the importance of the High Altitude Camp Center that Mayor Büyükkılıç brought to the city and crowned Erciyes, and noted that its value will be understood very well in the coming years. Cıngı thanked Büyükkılıç for his service and investments.
The Vice President of the Turkish Motorcycle Federation, Mahmut Nedim Akülke, who stated that they have been organizing different events all around the country for 15 years with the slogan of 'Sports is the Future of Tourism' and that they have created added value for the cities they have organized, also emphasized that the most important argument in the promotion is sports tourism. Akülke concluded his speech by saying, "On this special day, Erciyes is a love, and today all lovers are in Erciyes" regarding Erciyes, which he describes as the flagship in tourism and adds great value to tourism and economy.
The introductory meeting ended with a group photo.
