Kieran Henderson, who says the initiatives put in place since 2003 have made Orkney better placed for a successful games in Shetland 2005. (Picture: Kenny Pirie)

With the NatWest Island Games 2005 in Shetland fast approaching, Orkney sportsmen and women are turning their attentions to July’s sporting spectacular.

Throughout the county, Orkney teams are increasing their efforts and working through training programmes that will, hopefully, bring a collection of medals back to the county.The work, however, is not all hands on, and the behind the scenes activity of Orkney Islands Games Association is equally demanding.

Orkney’s disappointing showing at the 2003 Games in Guernsey catapulted the association into action, and it is hoped that Orkney’s 2005 squad can do better than ever before.

The 2003 Games produced only one solitary bronze medal for Orkney, and, as a result, a whole host of new measures have been adopted by the association in an attempt to get the county’s sporting performance back on track.

With increasing financial support and the introduction of new grant schemes, Orkney teams have enjoyed improved facilities and better coaching.

Although the hard work culminates in July’s week-long event, the preparation has been ongoing for the association and competitors alike.

This year, Orkney, one of the original island members, will be represented in 14 of the 15 sports available, which is four more than in 2003.

No doubt, those involved will be hoping that the increased representation helps to transform the county’s medal drought.

The Orkney team travelling to Shetland in July will consist of approximately 157 sportsmen, women and coaching staff -a massive increase compared to the 74 that travelled to Guernsey in 2003.

The increase mirrors the work that the association has undertaken over the last year and a half, and according to Kieran Henderson, Orkney team manager, this will put the county in a better position.

Jim Middlemas’s bronze medal in the archery recurve head-to-head knockout tournament spared Orkney’s 2003 blushes, slightly, and cemented their 19th overall standing in the medals table.

Despite the lack of silverware in 2003, there were some positive signs from Orkney athletes. Competing in their second Island Games, the Orkney footballers did well to win their first ever Games match with a 3-1 victory over Alderney.

Jeremy Smyth and Lynda Low, both silver medalists in 2001, took fourth and fifth in the 2003 javelin and hammer events respectively.

The men’s triathlon team finished fifth overall, and a personal best performance from some of Orkney’s young swimmers was equally satisfying. It was a young team that travelled to Guernsey, and the association are confident that the experience gained there will benefit the team travelling to Shetland.

Speaking to The Orcadian, Mr Henderson said the 2003 Games were greeted with disappointment, but importantly, highlighted the steps that needed to be taken.

He said: “I think we came back feeling a bit disappointed and it made certain teams look at how they operate and their development programmes.

“But to be fair, conditions were not favourable in Guernsey and we should be better suited to the conditions in Shetland. Equally, we were the only county that didn’t have a development officer in place.

“Following the Guernsey games, we had a meeting to make sure the teams were as prepared for 2005 as possible.

“The response has been brilliant. We requested each team to come up with a development plan on where they are, where they want to be, and how they can get there.

“A business plan has also been implemented and we have a set of key actions, these are to assist and to facilitate the teams and support them in any way we can.

“We are making a united effort with the Orkney teams and are optimistic that we can do well.”

According to Mr Henderson, the appointment of a sports development officer has been crucial.

He continued: “Importantly, we established the position of a sports development officer.

“This embraces all sports, our links with Sports Scotland, and our key actions which will help them to improve.

“Vicky Copland has taken on this role and done tremendously well. We must remember, however, that it doesn’t happen overnight, we are laying the foundations at the moment and the plans are coming together.”

Mr Henderson also went on to say that funds received from new grant schemes have been pivotal in assisting Orkney teams to improve standards.

He said: “There have been more grants set up in recent time, grants through the Executive’s Quality of Life programme and grants from NatWest, the sponsors of the Islands Games.

“This money has been used to enable our teams to travel south to compete - this has been a great experience for those involved and a huge benefit to Orkney sports.

“The increased funding has also allowed us to buy more equipment and, if required, bring experienced coaches from south up to Orkney to help.

Sports development officer Vicky Copland, whose appointment has helped bring a mood of optimism to those involved in all sport in the county.

“A lot has happened since 2003 and I think there is a lot of enthusiasm for the games.

“It would appear that the teams are really preparing thoroughly and we now have a bigger team with bigger prospects.

“Sports like bowls and squash weren’t included in the last games so it will be exciting for them and we have good competitors in these sports.

“There will be semi-professional and world-class athletes in Shetland, the standards at the games are rocketing and this is where Orkney needs to move to.

“It is difficult to say how well we can do this year. The signs are good in a lot of the disciplines and there is certainly potential to win medals.

“Unlike 2003, we will have a really big athletics team and hopefully we will gain success in this field.

“This will be the biggest sporting competition that many of our competitors will have competed in and it is a fantastic opportunity.

“It will be a real challenge for them and hopefully they will come out stronger for it. I think that if the coaches prepare them well, we will have a good chance of performing above our ability and, hopefully, winning more medals.”

The NatWest Island Games 2005 will run from July 9 to 15. Orkney will be represented in: air weapons, archery, athletics, badminton, bowls, clay pigeon shooting, cycling, football, golf, sailing, squash, swimming, table tennis and volleyball.