Games team did us proud... let’s make sure we’re hosts in 2025

CROESO adref a llongyfarchiadau - welcome home and congratulations! That’s my message to all of the Island Games family – athletes, supporters, coaches, fundraisers and organisers – as they return, sun-kissed and exhausted no doubt, from last week’s Games in Gibraltar.

And what a week it was, too! There were six medals won for Ynys Môn throughout the week – two gold, a silver and three bronze – but overall the performances and efforts from each and every Ynys Môn competitor was fantastic.

Each and every one of our Island Games family did Ynys Môn very proud over in Gibraltar, and they deserve every plaudit for their success.

But not only did the Ynys Môn Island Games Association leave Gibraltar with great sporting success stories and memories, they also came home with the seal of approval from the International Island Games Executive Committee as the preferred bidder for holding the Games in 2025.

It’s not quite the green light to hold the games – there needs to be more detailed planning before we get that final approval, but it’s another major hurdle.

It’s been good to work on the bid committee over the past few years, and I look forward to all of us up our sleeves now to seal

the deal. It’ll be brilliant for the island, in terms of the event itself, plus also the excitement of the build-up, getting more young people hooked on sport, and the lasting legacy it’ll leave.

As the Assembly goes into recess at the end of this week, I look forward to not having to travel down to Cardiff every week, and to be able to work full-time in the constituency (and living full-time with my family!).

But I’ll look forward to a summer season of local and national events too.

Preparations are well under way for the Anglesey Show, and I know how disappointed organisers are that they’ve had to decide to keep horses and ponies away this year because of fears about equine flu, but I know they’ll do all they can to make sure we have another memorable Sioe Môn.

I’ll spend a day at the Royal Welsh Show, too, hoping that lessons have been learnt after last year, when our wonderful produce was stripped of its proud ‘Welsh’ branding by UK Government.

If we can’t celebrate Welsh produce at our main rural showpiece, where can we?!

Finally it was a real pleasure to give a speech in the Assembly last week to note Anglesey’s major contribution to the lunar landing exactly 50 years ago this week. Tecwyn Roberts, an aerospace engineer born in Llanddaniel, was key to designing Mission Control.

He was at the very heart of the team that orchestrated the landing on July 20 1969, and through Tecwyn, Ynys Môn was right there as history was made!