Island Games

History

The Island Games began in 1985 as the Inter-Island Games, as part of the Isle of Man International Year of Sport, and were intended to be a one-off sporting celebration only. Geoffrey Corlett, who became the first Games Director, not only contacted the islands surrounding the United Kingdom, but also encouraged the countries of Iceland and Malta, the territories of Faroe Islands, Greenland, Saint Helena, the Channel Islands and others to participate.

Initially, fifteen islands with 600 competitors and officials took part in seven sports, with the total cost of staging the Games being put at £70,000. The track and field events were held on an eight-lane grass track, a far cry from the current games, which now use synthetic tracks in stadiums capable of holding thousands of spectators. The Games of 1985 were so successful that organisers decided to hold a similar event two years later. The Games have grown from strength to strength, with limits now in place for the number of teams, and the number of sports at each Games, currently 12 to 14. Sark could be considered the most successful island, their population of 600 having acquired 20 medals by 2015, one for every 30 people.

NatWest International has been the main sponsor of the Games since 1999. In April 2018, they signed a deal extending their sponsorship until at least 2021. In 2020, Natwest International confirmed the Guernsey games, originally scheduled for 2021, but delayed to 2023, due to the COVID-19 pandemic would be the last tournament they would be sponsoring. At the time the replacement sponsor had not been confirmed.

A traditional symbol of the games was started in 1991 when Åland asked all teams to bring some water from their islands, which was then mixed in a fountain. In all subsequent games, water from the previous fountain has added samples of water from each island competing in the new games, creating a symbol of "mixing together".

Editions

Guernsey put in a bid for the 2021 Games following the Faroe Islands' withdrawal from hosting. The bid was approved in July 2016. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Games were cancelled and rescheduled for 2023 with Guernsey still as hosts, with future hosts pushed out by two years as well.

Orkney hosted the 2025 Games. They were awarded the right to host on 7 July 2018 at the AGM in Gibraltar.

The Isle of Man made an official bid to host the Island Games in 2029 in July 2023.

In August 2018 it was reported that the Falkland Islands are considering hosting the Games in 2033.

In December 2023 it was announced that the Faroe Islands would replace Ynys Môn as the hosts of the 2027 games due to funding having been directed to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Faroe Islands, who had submitted a bid for the 2031 games, expressed a desire to host the games early, having previously guaranteed funding towards the games in 2018, and they were selected as a replacement for Ynys Môn.

Participation

A total of 28 islands, island groups or territories have participated in the Island Games; eleven of these have participated in every Island Games. |World |Europe

Medals

Every island has won at least 4 medals with Alderney the only island awaiting their first Gold.

Islands marked in grey are no longer members of the IIGA and so cannot compete at the Island Games.

Participation in other games

Of the 24 current IIGA members, two (Bermuda and the Cayman Islands) have competed in their own right at the Olympic Games.

Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Jersey and St. Helena have each sent teams to the Commonwealth Games.

Olympic athletes

Islanders who have gone on to participate in Olympic Games events include:

• Sir Mark Cavendish (Isle of Man) — cycling (Olympic silver medal winner)
• Alastair Chalmers (Guernsey) - 400m hurdles - Paris 2024
• Cameron Chalmers (Guernsey) - 4 × 400m - Tokyo 2020
• Dale Garland (Guernsey) - 4 × 400m - Beijing 2008
• Rebecca Heyliger (Bermuda) - swimming
• Pál Joensen (Faroe Islands) — swimming (World Championship bronze medal winner)
• Lee Merrien (Guernsey) - Marathon - London 2012
• Cydonie Mothersille (Cayman Islands) — 200m (World Championship bronze medal winner)
• Kelly Sotherton (Isle of Wight) — heptathlon and 400m (Olympic bronze medal winner)
• Mattias Sunneborn (Gotland) — long jump and 200m (World Indoor Championship silver medal winner)
• Albert Torres (Menorca) — cycling (World Championship gold medal winner)
• Andres Lauk (Saaremaa) − cycling − Atlanta 1996

Sports

The host island chooses between 12 and 14 different sports for their games from this list:

Notably, the Island Games' football tournament is one of the most well-established tournaments of non-FIFA international football.

Notes

References

References

1. "Inaugural Inter-Island Games - Isle of Man 1985". iiga.org.
2. "The Games". Jersey2015.com.
3. "Guernsey Island Games in 2021 the last to be sponsored by NatWest International". itv.com.
4. (8 July 2023). "Bailiff of Guernsey McMahon opens Island Games on St Peter Port seafront".
5. (4 August 2015). "Island Games: Guernsey to bid to host 2021 event".
6. "Dates for Orkney 2025 International Island Games Confirmed - News {{!}} VisitScotland.org".
7. (11 July 2023). "Official bid to bring Games back to Manx soil".
8. (27 August 2018). "Falklands wants to host the 2033 Island Games".
9. (14 July 2023). "Faroe Islands to host 2031 International Island Games"%20stated%20in%20an%20announcement.).
10. (30 May 2018). "Faroe Islands to bid for the Island Games".
11. (22 December 2023). "2027 Island Games: Faroe Islands to host after Ynys Mon pull out".
12. "NatWest Island Games - Rhodes 2007 June 30th - July 6th".
13. "2017 sports".
14. James Law. "BBC Sport - Island Games: Menorca pull out of hosting 2019 event". BBC Sport.
15. "BBC Sport - Island Games: Gibraltar bid to host 2019 competition". BBC Sport.
16. "Guernsey to host the 2021 Island Games". IIGA.
17. "2019 Island Games: Gibraltar axes football, cycling and volleyball".
18. (26 September 2020). "Guernsey NatWest International Island Games 2021 postponed". International Island Games Association.
19. (15 December 2020). "'Stability needed after Games postponement'". Jersey Evening Post.
20. (2 July 2016). "Guernsey to host 2021 Island Games". BBC News.
21. (7 July 2018). "Orkney to host 2023 Island Games".
22. (11 December 2025). "Island Games boosted Orkney's economy by £4m".
23. (28 September 2020). "Ynys Môn secure rights to host International Island Games".
24. (22 December 2023). "Island Games 2027 - New Hosts".
25. (9 December 2020). "2021 Island Games Postponed To 2023".
26. (15 July 2024). "Isle of Man confirmed as 2029 Island Games host".
27. "About the Games". IIGA.