| It
may be the smallest island ever to host the Natwest Island Games, but members
of the Shetland 2005 organising committee are certain that this year's event will
be one of the most successful ever seen. From July 9 to
July 15 this year, thousands of competitors and spectators will pour into Shetland
to absorb the exciting atmosphere that is central to this colourful sporting event. Athletes
coming from 24 island communities will take part in 15 sports and will perform
in front of thousands of spectators. The Games has an interesting
history and has grown from strength to strength since its introduction in 1985
on the Isle of Man. Its main aim was to bring athletes
from small islands from around the globe together in sporting competition and
provide a platform for communities to mix and sample cultural differences. Following
the outstanding success of the 1985 Games it was decided to make the event a regular
fixture with a different island hosting the festival every two years. Islands
that have hosted previous Games include: the Faroe Islands, Aland, Isle of Wight,
Gibraltar, Jersey and Gotland. Its continuing popularity
has seen increasing numbers of islands competing with 15 in its first year growing
to 24. The Games play host to a wide variety of sporting
activities and this year will include: archery, athletics, badminton, bowls, cycling,
football, gymnastics, sailing, shooting, squash, swimming, table tennis, volleyball
and wind surfing. Teams from Orkney will be entered into
14 of these sports and will, no doubt, be hoping to take home more than the one
solitary bronze they got in 2003. Bo Frykenstam, chairman
of the Island Games Association, said that the Games have grown rapidly since
1985 and that audiences can expect a competitive event. He
told The Orcadian: "The Games have improved immensely since 1985.
They are more professional, better organised, the standard of the competitors
is much higher, the standard of the venues for sport has developed on all member
islands, most notably on host islands. "The audiences
can expect fierce competition with young athletes doing their best whilst enjoying
the 'Friendly Games'. There will be a chance to watch some top-class athletes.
For spectators, volunteers and officials it is a great experience to be part of
the 'Friendly Games'." Fiona Dally, operations manager
for the 2005 Games, highlighted the level of the visitors that will be coming
to Shetland in July "There are going to be at least
3,000 people coming to Shetland for the Games. Over 2,000 competitors will be
here with related staff, with team specialists and representatives. With high
spectator numbers we are expecting this figure to rise. With such high numbers
we are anticipating a really exciting event which will put Shetland on the map." Ms
Dally also went on to say that this would be the biggest event ever to be held
in Shetland. "It certainly will be the biggest ever
event to come to Shetland. When the Tall Ships came here it was really popular.
This, however, will be on a greater scale. We will have lots of visitors and it
will be great for Shetland. "Preparations have been
ongoing for years now and we are looking forward to seeing the plans come to light.
The Games will introduce a lot of people to Shetland and we are hoping that many
of these people will come back." Gary Jakeman, general
manager of the games company, was involved in the organising of the 2001 Games,
and has brought his experiences and knowledge into the Shetland event. He said
that spectators can expect to see top class standards at the Games. "It
is difficult trying to make people understand how good the
talent will be. It is mind-blowing how big this event is and how good some of
these athletes are. "A lot of the athletes will be
taking this very seriously and hoping to return home with medals. That type of
competition will make the Games really interesting. I think a lot of spectators
will be surprised at exactly how good some of these athletes really are." Mr
Frykenstam is confident in Shetland's ability to host a successful Games. He
said: "Shetland was chosen to host the Games because the member islands have
confidence in Shetland's ability to organise a good Games. "I
am confident the Games in Shetland will be well organised with strong support
from the Islands Council and the people in Shetland. It is good that the Games
will have a special Shetland flavour." Shetland have
been preparing to host the Games for years and now possess facilities that will
match any seen at the Games before. The Clickimin leisure centre will be the hub
of the events with six of the sports taking place in this state-of-the-art complex
including the opening and closing ceremonies. Other events will be spread out
across the Shetland county going as far north as the isle of Unst. According
to early figures, it will cost £4.5 million to host the Games, but with
potential takings of £7 million, the festival could generate huge financial
rewards to the county. A large chunk of this expenditure
has been invested in expanding old and creating new facilities that are a prerequisite
to hosting the event. One
of the major projects was the construction of three new squash courts at the already
impressive Clickimin Centre. The new courts have been built
with special sliding partitions which can accommodate three singles courts and
two doubles courts Across the county changing rooms and
playing fields are being built and upgraded. In a project
funded by Shetland Charitable and Recreational trusts the changing rooms at Boddam
- which will host some of the football matches - have been improved. £77,000
has been ploughed into the refurbishment which will provide top quality services
for visiting athletes and Shetland footballers in years to come. Further
changing rooms are subsequently being in built in Burra, Scalloway and Cunningsburgh.
Strom Park in Whiteness received a £35,000 investment from the Shetland
Charitable Trust to provide a referees' changing room. The investment has been
huge but it will provide Shetland with modern facilities for years to come. Ms
Dally said that the final construction of facilities are on schedule and that
the venues will provide an excellent setting for future sports in Shetland. She
said: "We have had more facilities put in place over the last year. There
is a new athletics track and three squash courts which will be used during the
Games. Things are coming on really well with the upgrades and they will all be
completed by Easter. "Not only will they be used during
the Games, but future sportsmen and women in Shetland will benefit from these
improvements for years to come. They will definitely benefit Shetland in the long-term
and it is good that we will have high-standard facilities to use in the future." It
is not only the facilities that have required expansion, but measures have had
to be brought in to cope with the massive accommodation demand that is anticipated
for July. Hotels, guesthouses and bed and breakfasts will
be fully booked. To accommodate competitors, organisers have had to employ the
services of cruise ships to deal with the demand. The Van Gogh, which can hold
up to 727 competitors, and the cruise ship Athena, which will hold up to 630,
will be docked in Shetland for the Games. Ms Dally said:
"As a relatively small island, accommodation is limited. We are expecting
thousands of visitors so we have had to bring in two cruise ships which will help
cope with the demand. These will accommodate a high number of competitors which
is much needed. At this stage it is really important for us to stress that spectators
coming to Shetland should book accommodation as soon as possible." Internal
travel to get competitors and spectators to the events is currently being decided
and it is hoped that a smooth system will be in place to make travelling to each
destination as easy as possible. Increased security will also be required during
the Games and organisers have confirmed that a mainland company will be employed
to add to the security at all events. Although the event
itself will last only seven-days, years of preparation have been invested into
the planning and implementing of the Games. It was back
in 1999 at the Games on Gotland when the first bid was launched to the International
Island Games Association. The Shetland Island Games Association
(SIGA) had until December 2000 to undertake planning and compile a bid document
that had to be disseminated to all the member islands. A
steering group was established in autumn 1999 that completed a feasibility study.
This report was submitted to the Shetland Islands Council (SIC) services committee
who then entered a report to the full Council. SIC approved support and funding
for the Games by August 2000 and a bid committee was then established. During
the IX Games on the Isle of Man, July 2001, the group had to make a bid presentation
to the Island Games Association and its members. This bid was officially accepted
and Shetland was unveiled as the 2005 host island. The
bid committee's final assignment was to identify members of the local community
who could see the project through until July 2005. A company
was then established to cope with the management and funding of the event, and
in February 2002, Shetland Island Games Ltd was formed. John
Scott, who was appointed as chairman, works with representatives from SIC, the
recreational trust and members of the bid committee. To bring a further range
of skills to the group, four further directors were appointed. Key objectives
were then outlined to initiate a strategy to deal with issues such as: finance,
accommodation, internal travel, and sponsorship. With the
preparation nearing completion, SIGA will be able to use their experiences to
influence future Games. With Orkney planning to launch a bid for the 2013 Games,
SIGA will, hopefully, be able to offer advice on the key stages of preparation. Ms
Dally said: "It is good to see Orkney aiming to host the Games as well. Although
nothing has been finalised, we are hoping to come down to Orkney soon and offer
advice on bidding for the Games. Orkney has bid for the event before and it would
be good to see the Games go to Orkney in 2013." | 
