The XIX

Island Games The Island Games (currently known as the NatWest International Island Games for sponsorship reasons) are biennial international multi-sports events organised by the International Island Games Association (IIGA). Competitor teams each represent d ...

(also known as the ''2023 NatWest Island Games'' for sponsorship reasons) were to have been held in Guernsey,

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

in 2021 however due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

the games have been postponed. This occasion will be the third time that the island has hosted the games, the first being in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

, the second in 2003. When rescheduled, the week long event will see around 3,000 competitors from 24 islands take part in 14 sports.

Host

The

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

were initially chosen to host the games but pulled out of doing so in early 2015. In July 2016 the Island Games AGM unanimously decided to award the games to Guernsey. The Guernsey organising committee chair is Dame

Mary Perkins Dame Mary Lesley Perkins, (born 14 February 1944) is an English billionaire who is the co-founder of Specsavers, the British retail optometry chain. Together with her husband, co-founder and chairman Doug Perkins, Dame Mary has three childre ...

, supported by Peter Vidamour as sports director and Ian Damarell as Finance Director. The

International Island Games Association The International Island Games Association (IIGA) is the organising body for the Island Games, a friendly biennial multi-sport competition between teams from several European islands and other small territories (24 Members from 7 Nations). The ...

(IIGA) advisor is Eric Legg.

Participating islands

It is likely that 24 island entities of the

IIGA The International Island Games Association (IIGA) is the organising body for the Island Games, a friendly biennial multi-sport competition between teams from several European islands and other small territories (24 Members from 7 Nations). The ...

, from Europe, South Atlantic and the Caribbean area will compete in these Games.

Sports

The sports selection is expected to follow the same itinerary as the

2019 Island Games The XVIII Island Games (officially the ''2019 NatWest Island Games'') was held in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar between 6 and 12 July 2019. This was the second time that the territory has hosted the games, the first being in 1995. ...

however the included sports may change. ''Numbers in parentheses indicate the number of medal events contested in each sport.''

References

{{Island Games Island Games Multi-sport events in the Channel Islands

Sports competitions in Guernsey International sports competitions hosted by the Channel Islands Island Games 2021