THE NAT WEST INTERNATIONAL ISLAND GAMES

The IIG Association was founded in the Isle of Man in 1985. Participants come from islands in, or associated with, eighth sovereign states (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Malta, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the UK). The 24 current members of the IIGA are:

Åland  Alderney  Bermuda  Cayman Islands  Falkland Islands  Faroe Islands

Frøya  Gibraltar  Gotland  Gozo  Greenland  Guernsey

Hitra  Isle of Man  Isle of Wight  Jersey  Menorca  Orkney

Saaremaa  Saint Helena  Sark  Shetland  Western Isles  Ynys Môn

Hosts, Guernsey has topped the NatWest International Island Games 2023 medal winners' table, taking home 54 gold, 48 silver and 41 bronze medals, and winning 143 overall.

Guernsey, topped the medal table (143) and was victorious in many of the 205 different sports, securing gold medals in athletics, shooting, swimming, table tennis and many more events. Jersey secured a second-place finish (126), with 41 gold, 41 silver and 44 bronze medals under its belt. The Isle of Man (63) was third- with 20 gold, 16 silver and 27 bronze medals.

OTHER MEDAL WINNERS INCLUDE: Orkney 2, Hitra 6, Shetland 7, Westland 5, Gozo 4, Falklands 4, Greenland 6, Bermuda 10, Gibraltar 16, Aland 14, Cayman 18, Ynys Mon 18, Menorca 19, Saaremaa 21, Gotland 24, Isle of Wight 38. How many of these can you locate-get the Atlas out?

Gibraltar is the only member of the IIGA that is not an island or group of islands. Ynys Môn (Anglesey), Frøya and Hitra have bridge or tunnel connections to their mainland. Greenland is by far the largest island, and is magnitudes bigger than all the rest combined, but is very sparsely populated. Former members of the IIGA include the countries Iceland and Malta, the province Prince Edward Island, and Rhodes.

Football was played at: Corbet Field, Northfield and The Track, St. Sampsin's, Blanches Pierre Lane, St Martin's College Field, St Peter Port and Footes Lane, which is a multi-use sports stadium in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey and is the main sports venue on the island. It has a capacity of 5,000 with 720 seated. Footes Lane is the national stadium of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Footes Lane's grandstand was completed in time for the 2003 Island Games at a cost of £1.2 million. Within its first year of construction it won a Civic Trust award for architectural design.