Next year's Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor can have benefits reaching far beyond golf.
That was the message on Wednesday from Rhodri Morgan, First Minister for Wales, after a review of the plans for the first-ever match on Welsh soil in 16 months' time.
"What we are promoting is the idea that it's better to be out in the great Welsh outdoors instead of sitting in front of your television playing with PlayStation or a zapper or whatever," he said.
"You will no doubt have heard these dire warnings that 90% of the children of Britain or whole western world will be obese by the year 2050 because they will be spending 45 hours a week on their PlayStations.
"We have to promote enjoyment of the great Welsh outdoors by walking or golfing or football or cricket or whatever.
"Sport is a major way of combating this huge public health threat of obesity among young people, leading to an epidemic of diabetes Type 2 and heart disease and all of the other things that happen if you do become obese."
Morgan also spoke about using the Ryder Cup to "put Wales on the map", commenting: "Wales has a deficit in its profile compared to Scotland and Ireland and we didn't want to continue to be Europe's best-kept secret.
"When we say 'put it on the map', that means a lot of things. Business investment opportunities, trade opportunities and trade partnership funds for people thinking of studying in universities from UK and abroad.
"Film-makers thinking about making films or TV series in Wales as well as trying to encourage more golf tourism in Wales and non-golf tourists.
"We still believe it is going to achieve a once-in-a-generation transformation of Wales's profile abroad, especially in North America and Japan."
Although Morgan said it was "all systems go", there have been local rumours about the economic climate placing a question mark over Celtic Manor's staging of the event. But resort chairman Sir Terry Matthews has totally quashed them.
"I'm lucky enough to have been in business now for about 40 years and I typically don't believe the press sometimes and what they write," he stated.
"God knows who speculates about what. Doesn't have much effect on me. Frankly you could hit me with a nuke and it still would not have much effect.
"As far as I can tell this Ryder Cup will be the best ever. I'm confident, things are going well and I'm feeling good about it."
George O'Grady, executive director of the European Tour, added: "From the Ryder Cup Europe point of view, we feel more confident here than some of the other rumoured venues we might have been moving it to, so I think we are very solid here."
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