News Release - Tuesday 12 July 2005
A WHISTLESTOP VISIT TO SHETLAND FOR PATRICIA FERGUSON, MINISTER FOR TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT
On a whistlestop tour of Shetland Patricia Ferguson MSP, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, visited the NatWest Island Games in the afternoon of day three of the competition, giving some particular encouragement to volleyball players from Greenland, Aland and Saaremaa as they were getting in some game practice beside Breiwick in Lerwick.
Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, Patricia Ferguson MSP, said: 'This is an extremely well organised event and with the strong support from both sportscotland and EventScotland The NatWest Island Games can be used as a template for similar large scale events in other islands and rural areas of Scotland.
It is great to see people from islands from all over the world making friends and enjoying this fantastic Shetland hospitality.'
She followed this with a visit to the Clickimin Leisure Complex, the main venue for the week-long competition, where she experienced the keen and friendly competition that was taking place in venues through out the centre.
This included the finals of the first day of the swimming event that was packed with very enthusiastic supporters.
Patricia Ferguson also visited Victoria Pier in Lerwick to launch the 'Flavour of Shetland', an event, organised by a local business development agency Shetland Development Trust, that runs all week to celebrate and showcase Shetland. With a wide selection of food and drink available, accompanied by craft and culture displays, and informal live traditional and contemporary music performances, this is already proving popular with a number of the 2500 athletes and officials from the 24 island communities from around the world who are taking part.
Today (Tuesday 12 July) also saw the announcement of the host island for the NatWest Island Games XIII in 2009. Bidding committees from both Aland and Yns Mon were on tender hooks as the assembled International Island Games Association (IGA) delegates and a large number of print and broadcast media waited to here the news. Representatives of the Aland Island Games Association and their bidding committee were overjoyed when Bo Frykenstam, the Chairman of the IGA, announced that the 54 IGA delegates had voted 33 to
21 in their favour.
Dick Ekstrom, Chairman of the Aland Bid Committee, Said: 'After a very exciting few days in Shetland this is very exciting news. It is very difficult to describe; a very nice feeling. I can't wait to tell all those people back home who helped us with the bid.
I think it was our facilities that helped us to win. The Games are for the athletes; they are the most important thing in the Games and we have great facilities for them. We also look forward to further improvements ahead of 2009.
I am sad for Yns Mon. I hope they do get their facilities that they so desperately want. We will support them all the way if they choose to bid for the next Games.'
Rhodes will host the NatWest Island Games XII in 2007.
The Shetland Coastguard were busy this morning on NatWest Island Games business. Four Faroese supporters in a large open rowing boat had to be rescued from the North Sea, North West of Shetland. They had had set off with a flotilla of small boats from the Faroe Islands on Tuesday 5 July in order to get to Shetland in time for the Games opening ceremony. Whilst all the other boats arrived, full of Faroese enthusiastic supporters in good time to watch their supporters compete the four intrepid explorers were still struggling with rough seas and rapidly diminishing energy resources.
When they started drifting miles off course, seven days later, their support crew who were already enjoying the Shetland hospitality and the keen competition of the Games did decide to worry and called for back up!
The Western Isles, who compete in the Games for the first time this year, having been accepted into the IGA in 2003 in Guernsey, won their first medal of the Games today. Eve Carrington (17) from the Isle of Lewis, won a silver medal in the high jump with a jump of 1.60 metres.
The Western Isles Island Games Athletics Manager, Jim Warnock, was over the moon for Eve. He said: This is fantastic! Wonderful and very well deserved. I'm so proud of Eve, especially now that she has brought about what we have dreamed of happening The Western Isles first ever medal at the NatWest Island Games.'
Eve is now hoping to add to her medal tally with a podium place in the 100 metre hurdles, 100 metres and 200 metres later in the week.
THE ORGANISERS of the postponed entertainment section of the NatWest Island Games XI Opening Ceremony have rescheduled the event. It will now be held at the Clickimin Leisure Complex Athletics Arena, Lerwick, at 17:00 tomorrow [Wednesday 13 July].
Due to the nature of some of energetic performances, some of which would be taking place on elevated props that had become very wet and slippery, the organisers felt it was necessary to postpone the entertainment at the Opening Ceremony on Friday 9 July.
John Scott, Chairman of Shetland Island Games 2005 Ltd, said: 'We were extremely disappointed that, for safety reasons the performance was postponed, but delighted that everyone will have the chance to see it on Wednesday.'
The element that all participants in the NatWest Island Games have in common is the sea. This entertainment package takes the sea as its starting point and in a series of waves, explores the constant movement of water and attempts of humanity over the centuries to tame this most elemental of forces. Mixed with this are elements of folklore and culture that lend so much to the identity of all sea faring communities. Pupils from eight schools across Shetland will perform together with members of Shetland Folk Dance, Shetland Youth Theatre and the Up-Helly-Aa squad.
Shetland Arts Trust project support officer Jacqui Clark said: 'We are all looking forward to performing the piece. The children will be delighted to get their chance to show how hard they have worked.'
After the third day of competition the medal table stands as follows:
1 - Guernsey 18 gold, 12 silver, 16 bronze. Total = 46
2 - Jersey 14 gold, 13 silver, 11 bronze. Total = 38
3 - Isle of Man 13 gold, 8 silver, 12 bronze. Total = 33
4 - Faroe Islands 5 gold, 4 silver, 10 bronze. Total = 19
5 - Shetland 4 gold, 5 silver, 10 bronze. Total =19
13 - Orkney 1 gold 2 silver 2bronze Total = 5
19 - Western Isles - 1 silver Total = 1
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