HYROX Tenerife has received €100,000 in sponsorship from Promotur Turismo Canarias, despite scoring relatively poorly when it came to its impact on local businesses.
The event took place over the weekend at the Recinto Ferial in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, with the public funding coming through a scheme designed to support private events that help promote the Canary Islands brand.
The sponsorship was awarded to Victum Sports SL, which submitted its application on 26 March for the September sporting event.
The company’s proposed budget for HYROX Tenerife was €1,072,188, with Promotur’s sponsorship programme allowing grants of up to €100,000 for qualifying events.
The final sponsorship decision was signed on 31 August, just days before the event.
A score of 58.25 out of 100
HYROX Tenerife received an overall score of 58.25 out of 100 in the assessment.
One of the weaker areas was its impact on local businesses.
The event received just 2 points out of a possible 6 for this category, reflecting limited engagement with local companies and job creation.
It scored 4 points for its connection with local identity and another 4 points for its contribution to improving tourism.
Where it performed particularly well was brand visibility, receiving 8 out of 10.
The overall result was enough to pass the required minimum for the advertising return assessment, although the event scored less strongly across some of the other promotional channels.
The final payment of the sponsorship is also dependent on the required documentation being accepted and submitted.
A bigger budget for events
The HYROX funding forms part of a wider €7.95 million Promotur budget for private events designed to generate tourism promotion and publicity for the Canary Islands.
So there is clearly a sizeable pot of money available for events that are considered useful in promoting the islands.
The interesting bit in this case is the relatively low score for local economic impact.
An event can bring plenty of people to Tenerife and still have limited involvement with local businesses. That appears to be one of the weaker areas identified in the assessment of HYROX.
Heat and humidity cause complaints
The event also attracted criticism from some participants, although this wasn’t related to the sponsorship assessment.
A number of competitors took to social media to complain about the heat and humidity inside the venue, as well as some organisational issues.
There have also been reports of dizziness and fainting among competitors. However, there is currently no official figure for the number of medical interventions, so it’s difficult to say exactly how widespread the problem was.
One participant, Elisa Martínez, described the heat and humidity as oppressive and said some competitors appeared to struggle more than they had at similar events elsewhere.
She also pointed out that the conditions made exercises involving the sleds more difficult.
Not all bad news
Martínez did say that the water supply was adequate and that there was sufficient ventilation in the venue.
The problem was that the ventilation was moving hot air around, which isn’t exactly the refreshing breeze you might hope for during a fitness competition.
She also acknowledged that competing in Tenerife in early September means dealing with warm conditions.
Martínez said she hadn’t personally witnessed anyone fainting, although she did see some participants leave the venue because they were struggling with the heat.
Without an official health report, the actual number of incidents remains unclear.
For the competitors, the conditions were certainly part of the challenge.
For Promotur, meanwhile, the bigger question is whether events receiving public money can deliver a stronger benefit for local businesses as well as providing visibility for the Canary Islands.