Thorsten Palmquist, secretary-general of the NatWest Island Games, expresses his great surprise about the action of the municipal council: "For the council to get involved as co-arranger in a major event of this kind ... and then do something like this ... I don’t know what to say."

The council’s decision entails serious problems for the NatWest Island Games. Locating the contests in Hemse would involve great practical problems and make the event much more expensive. No money is budgeted to lay on transport for the competitors and functionaries.

Swimming is one of the biggest and most important sports in the NatWest Island Games and must be among the events, according to the regulations. Four years ago, when Gotland was chosen to host the 1999 NatWest Island Games, there was a proposal for new swimming baths in Visby. The question of whether to renovate the Solberga baths or to build a new facility has been postponed several times by the municipal council.

Week 35 the highest decision-making body of the Island Games, the executive committee, visited Gotland to inspect the facilities. They were met with this unfortunate news.

The Solberga baths were closed on 16 June 1998 by the safety representative. "It is not acceptable for the staff to continue working in this environment." The baths were built in 1961.

Parts of the above text come from an article in Gotlands Tidningar on 21 August 1998.

Isle of Man on Gotland
In the middle of July, Frank and Pat Anderson visited Gotland in connection with the Gotland Badminton Games. Besides being enthusiastic spectators and supporters, they also took the opportunity to visit some of the facilities that will be used during the Island Games. I grabbed the chance to meet Frank and Pat the day before their return, to hear what they thought about our potential as hosts of the 1999 Island Games.

When asked what they thought of Gotland, they replied: "We haven’t seen so very much of Gotland, but Visby is a very beautiful city, especially the town inside the walls. We have never walked as much as we have done during these days, beautiful narrow streets and alleys, and lots of nice cafés where you can sit and have a rest." Frank would urge anyone with inliners to bring them. Visby is flat, apart from the harbour area. Another tip is to hire a bicycle, an excellent way to get around Visby, where there are few slopes and everything is close at hand.

Naturally, I asked them what they thought of the Swedish breakfast. Many Swedes are rather sceptical about the English breakfast of bacon, sausage and baked beans. The Swedish breakfast met with approval from the British palate, and they said it tasted very good. They even ate yoghurt, although I could not be sure whether they meant yoghurt or the Swedish sour milk known as filmjölk. They also gave top marks to the different kinds of bread. Frank and Pat had also been out and dined well at a number of restaurants. On the last evening they were going back to their favourite restaurant, "Donners Brunn". Frank pointed out that I should write that there is a McDonald’s, an alternative that tastes the same no matter where in the world you come

Their impressions of the arenas they visited were as follows:

BADMINTON (Södervärnshallen): The ceiling is a metre too low, but otherwise there is ample space for competitors and spectators: big changing rooms, plenty of showers, sauna. The local badminton club laid on tasty and reasonably priced food in the cafeteria.

BOWLING (Visby Bowlingcenter and Wisborg Bowling & Squash): First-class!

BASKETBOLL (Sävehallen): A stand for spectators (no seats) and unfortunately difficult to see because of large concrete pillars. Good changing rooms.

SWIMMING: Only five lanes, and at the moment we do not know at all how we will manage to find a pool for the Island Games. See the separate article.

ATHLETICS (Gutavallen): Perfect tracks.

FOOTBALL (Gutavallen and others): Good, satisfactory facilities. Plenty of training pitches just beside the camp.

ARCHERY (at walking distance from the camp): Could hardly be better. Spacious facilities.

Frank and Pat also visited the camp, the Gotland Military Command that will be used as the Island Games village. They were impressed by the size of the place: large corridors, big rooms with 10–14 beds (bunk beds) per room. Each room also has a large space for recreation; for example, there are tables where you can sit and play cards or write postcards home to mother, large communal showers, common rooms with TV, a big dining room, and facilities for squash and bowling within easy reach.

It was two contented islanders who left the future Island Games island, only slightly disappointed that there were so few tourist and advertising brochures in English. They also missed menus in English. They would have liked to take more information home to the Isle of Man. They wished us the best of luck with our continued work of arranging the games, and they were already looking forward to returning to Gotland next summer, to attend the Eighth Island Games.

Susanne Gustafsson
Information Officer

No Royal Prince to the Opening Cermony
We had hoped that Prince Carl Philip would be able to come to open the games, but unfortunately we have received a negative answer from the Royal Palace.

"We recommend the Hemse Baths* as being by far the best from the participants’ point of view. The Hemse pool has six lanes and it is wide. I think it is good for the games if we move some sports out of Visby into the countryside".

"No money has been budgeted for the added expense, but the municipal council is a co-arranger, and now we are pinning our hopes on their being aware of their responsibility," said Lars Hammarström, chairman of the Organizing Committee and of the Gotland Sports Association. "Together we will make sure that good swimming events are laid on in Hemse!"

* Hemse is situated approx. 50 km south of Visby

Accommodation and travel
Many people have telephoned or sent e-mails to ask about accommodation on Gotland. The Organizing Committee has established cooperation with a travel agency, the Gotland Tourist Centre. They are in the process of producing a brochure presenting suitable accommodation alternatives during the week of the Island Games on Gotland: The Village Camp, the Harbour Hotel (Hamnhotellet), Gustavsvik Holiday Village and Wisby Hotel.

The brochure will also contain information about travel to and from Gotland and where you should phone for assistance in booking your trip. The brochure will be distributed when Island entry forms, technical official entry forms and individual entry forms are sent out on 26 September.

Health care
Information about Medical Support by Peter Ahlvin, M.D. Visby Hospital. More detailed information will come later on.

Organisation

• 24h medical service in village (nurse, physician, physical therapist) - no fee
• Consultations in hospital, pharmaceuticals - regular fee
• Paramedics (Red Cross) at all competition areas
• Physician, ambulance at main events
• Insurance needed for each team
• In camp: one room with table for treatment/massage per island
• No massage offered - bring own personel

Medical symposium

• Medical symposium before opening ceremony
• Description of medical service in the Games
• Open for all visiting medical personel & leaders
• Doping discussions and education
• Summary
• Different medical service at different arenas
• "Local medical office" in main camp - no charge
• Regular fee (EC standard) for health care outside camp
• Insurance strongly recommended

Goals

• Healthy games
• As little as possible disturbance of every-day medical service on Gotland
• Own medical service stations at primary care level

Doping
The Organizing Committee on Gotland has discussed whether doping tests should be introduced for the Island Games. The question was also a subject of lively debate during the IGA visit to Gotland. A representative of the Swedish Sports Confederation flew to Gotland to discuss the issue and the problems of doping tests.

Nothing has been decided. Instead, the matter will be further investigated during the autumn. Bo Frykenstam, Deputy Chairman of the IGA, and Thorsten Palmquist, Secretary General of the NatWest Island Games 1999, have been entrusted with the task of invest-igating the matter before the next meeting of the Executive Committee in February 1999.

25 visits per day
At present our homepage is linked to about 60 websites around the world. We hope there will soon be more.

Do you want a link to our homepage? We are grateful for all the assistance we can receive in spreading up-to-date information about the NatWest Island Games and our preparations for the event. Link to www.gotlandweb.com/
islandgames/.

Since starting the homepage just over two years ago, we have had a total of more than 7,000 visits. In May (before the "new" homepage was launched) we had 204 visits, in June (after the revamp) 435, and in July 725 visitors to the Island Games homepage. That means almost 25 visits a day!

New sport coordinator for football
Since Anna Nyman is studying on the mainland, a new sport coordinator has been appointed. Hans Rosengren will take over immediately.

Address:
Broskogs, Fårö
SE-620 35 FÅRÖSUND, SWEDEN

Telephone +498-22 40 82 (home),
Telephone +498-29 58 52 (work)
Fax +498-22 40 82 (home)

More visitors!
Mr Andrews Winnie from Shetland will be visiting Gotland on the 24–28 of September.

The following week, 1–5 of October, a three men troupe will come from Jersey.

Dr Carl Clinton, Jersey Team Doctor
Mr Mo Cotel, Deputy General Team Manager
Mr Syd Spence, General Team Manager.

We wish you all very welcome to Gotland!