The triumphs of Team Thailand at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will prompt Thais to become more interested in sport, presenting an opportunity to maximise sales of sports equipment, according to the Thailand Sporting Trade Association.
Kitti Charoenpornpanichkul, president of the association, said the sporting events in which Thai athletes pick up a medal would naturally receive a good deal of public attention.
This would generate interest among fans to participate actively in these sports, which would help generate more sales of sports equipment.
At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Thailand's Panipak Wongpattanakit won a gold medal for taekwondo and Sudaporn Seesondee received a bronze medal for boxing in the women's lightweight category.
Mr Kitti said following the country's first-ever gold medal in taekwondo in 2020, he saw an increase in the number of taekwondo enthusiasts, especially among young people.
He said on Friday that it is still unclear which sport or sports will come under the spotlight at this year's event as the games are still ongoing.
"Popular products during this year's competition are sports merchandise, especially apparel and footwear," Mr Kitti said.
As of Aug 5, it is guaranteed that the Thai team will not leave the Paris games empty-handed, as star shuttler Kunlavut Vitidsarn stunned Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia in the semi-finals on Sunday to become the first Thai men's singles player to reach the badminton final of an Olympic Games.
Moreover, Thai boxer Janjaem Suwannapheng also secured at least a bronze medal, after defeating Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey on Saturday.
In the semi-final bout, she will face Algeria's Imane Khelif, whose match is scheduled for 3.30am (Thailand time) tomorrow morning.
Thailand sent 51 athletes to compete in 17 sports at the Paris Olympics.
The sports they are competing in include boxing, weightlifting, taekwondo, athletics, shooting and women's volleyball, a sport in which Thai athletes have demonstrated significant potential for winning medals.
Kongsak Yodmanee, governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), said the SAT does not prioritise the number of medals won as they are just a by-product of participating in the games.
"Our main focus is that each athlete strives to set a better record," he said.
According to an evaluation by sports associations whose athletes are participating in the games, sports in which Thai athletes are most likely to win medals include taekwondo, badminton, weightlifting, golf and boxing, Mr Kongsak said.
Mr Kitti said the value of the sports equipment market is expected to reach 33 billion baht this year, up 10% from 2023, thanks to health-conscious consumers and the state's digital handout scheme.
