Manx athletes to fly flag at Island Games opening

Athletes representing the Isle of Man are set to fly the national flag at a ceremony marking the opening of the 2025 Island Games in Orkney.

Travelling to the the Scottish islands on two direct flights on Saturday morning, most of the 153-strong Manx team will land just hours before the games begin.

Set to run until 18 July, about 2,000 athletes from island nations around the world will compete in 12 sports including football, athletics, archery and swimming.

The 20th staging of the games, which will be hosted by broadcaster Lorraine Kelly, will see the ceremony officially opened by the Princess Royal.

At the last games, held in Guernsey in 2023, the Manx team of almost 200 competitors earned a total of 63 medals, including 20 gold and 16 silver.

The tally saw the island finish third in the overall standings, with the host nation topping the table ahead of fellow Channel Island Jersey in second.

The games started in 1985 on the Isle of Man to give the opportunity for young people to compete in an international competition against other islanders.

Orkney was initially chosen to host the 2023 edition of the games, but that was pushed back by two years after the 2021 event was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Participating islands include the Falkland Islands, Greenland, and Caribbean nations Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.

Known as "the friendly games", 12 sporting events will be the focus of the week-long event, which kicks off with the opening ceremony and athletes' parade in Kirkwall.

The opening will involve the Island Games' equivalent of the lighting of the Olympic flame - a traditional water ceremony, where water brought from each island is mixed together.

The youngest competitor of the games, gymnast Phoebe Christian, will act as the Isle of Man's water carrier on what will be her 13th birthday.

Swimmer Laura Kinley will lead the Manx delegation as flag bearer, celebrating her seventh appearance in the competition.

Sunday marks the first day of competition, with events including the triathlon and the women's 10,000m final taking place.

The Faroe Islands will be next to host the competition in 2027, with the Isle of Man set to welcome competitors for its third time in 2029.

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