Will the Channel Islands be able to host the Island Games again?

Tuesday 07 February 2023

Concerns have been raised that Jersey and Guernsey may never be able to host the multi-sport Island Games ever again if funding and accommodation concerns cannot be resolved.

Guernsey's Island Games Director Jon Marley says staging the Games, which attracts up to 3,000 visiting athletes and officials from across the globe, is becoming ever more challenging due to rising costs and a decrease in available beds.

The 19th edition of the biennial event was originally due be held in Guernsey in 2021, but was put back two years due to the pandemic. Since then, fuel and travel costs have increased exponentially, while, like in Jersey, many hotels have closed for redevelopment into flats.

Pictured: Guernsey's Games Director, Jon Marley.

Comparing the situation to when Guernsey last held the Games in 2003, Mr Marley said: "The climate [has changed]. The numbers of natural competitors back on the Island have dropped significantly and the hotels ... it's the same as in Jersey – when you are walking into St Helier, a number of the hotels have been demolished since 2015 and back home it's exactly the same.

"So it's accommodation, accommodation, accommodation. That's the biggest issue of the Island Games.

"We're certainly going to struggle to host again and Jersey will struggle to host again too."

He added: "You're asking competitors to spend upwards of £1,500 now for a week and you can have a very good holiday for that much money.

"It's asking a lot but luckily, all of our sportsmen and women are very committed and they keep on every two years, coughing up the money and going away and trying their hardest.

"We can only applaud them for that and try and build a better arena where it's possible for them to compete."

Hotel accommodation at a glance...

As of 2021, there were around 10,500 beds available in the island, split across around 60 hotels, while more than 1,000 more were available across registered self-catering apartments.

Between 2018 and 2021, the island has lost just under 300 beds, continuing a trend that had been ongoing for several years.

Since then, even more hotels have been lost - among them, the Mayfair, the neighbouring Stafford and Revere Hotels, and the Apollo, while there have also been plans to convert the Savoy into townhouses and, more recently, the Westhill Country Hotel. 

Pictured top: Team Jersey ready for the Island Games in 2019.