Next year we will be welcoming athletes from twenty-four islands, competing in fourteen sports, at twenty-seven venues across the Island. I am delighted that we will be welcoming the NatWest Island Games to Jersey. It gives us a unique opportunity to showcase our island, not only our sporting skills, but also our heritage, our culture, and our people.
The organising committee has been working to put these Games together since we won the bid in 2010. They decided – very early on – that an important element of our offering would be the volunteers. That’s you, the sports enthusiasts who run the clubs, the organising committee and, above all, the Waitrose Games Makers.
Games Makers
During Games Week you will all be one of the lynchpins of the event. You will be clearly visible at the opening and closing ceremonies, in the Games Village, at the Airport and Harbour, the sports venues, the car parks and you will play an essential role in the smooth running of the Games.
It is fitting that Waitrose have taken on the sponsorship of our games makers. Just as everyone who works at Waitrose owns Waitrose, every Games Maker can, and I believe will, feel ownership of the Island Games.
London 2012
After the success of London 2012 David Cameron praised the efforts of all the volunteers. He told them “Through the welcome and spirit you have shown, you have put a smile on the nation’s face. You have sent an incredible message about the warmth, friendliness and can-do spirit of the United Kingdom around the world. Quite simply, the Games couldn’t have happened without you.”
The Queen added her thanks in her Christmas speech, saying that the success of great festivals depends to an enormous degree on the dedication and effort of an army of volunteers. “Those public-spirited people came forward in the great tradition of all those who devote themselves to keeping others safe, supported and comforted.”
Volunteers
I know you will be going through the same training programme as the London 2012 Olympic volunteers. I know many of you are giving up a lot of time for this, some of you even taking holiday during the Games week.
And I know you will make us proud in Jersey, just as the Olympic Games Makers made Britain proud, so I would like to thank you for your commitment.
We have come a long way since the decision in 2008 to bid for the 2015 Games, and the clock is ticking fast – as I am reminded every time I go through the tunnel. Once we get in to the New Year, the Games will be upon us before we know it.
I am regularly updated on the progress of the Games by the organising committee and I am confident it will be a fantastic event. We have the infrastructure, the knowledge and the experience to deliver a great Games and, with your involvement, I am confident we will do just that.
You, the Waitrose Games Makers are critical to the success of the Games. The welcome you offer our visitors will set the tone for the whole week. You will make the difference.
So, on behalf of all Islanders, I thank you, the Waitrose Games Makers, and all the other volunteers, who are so committed to making the 2015 NatWest Island Games a resounding success.
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