ORGANISERS of the World Alternative Games in Llanwrtyd Wells are calling on more support from Welsh Government and tourism bodies to make the bi-annual event even bigger and better.

The Games attracted thousands of visitors to the UK’s smallest town over 17 days, with participants coming from as far afield as Australia and Iran, as well as various parts of the UK.

“We’ve read so much about this event in travel and other blogs, and followed the build up to it via social media, we just had to include a visit to Llanwrtyd Wells, and the World Alternative Games, as part of our tour of the UK,” said James McAuley, from Canberra, Australia, who is on a three-month tour of Europe with his partner, Claire.

“Everyone has been so friendly, and winning a silver medal in mountain bike bog snorkelling, and a bronze in belly flopping will be a lifetime memory – we’ve had two amazing days taking part in various activities, it will definitely be a highlight of our holiday, and I honestly can’t recommend a visit to the World Alternative Games highly enough.”

Once again the World Alternative Games also caught the eye of international TV, including the popular German children’s TV show ‘Kika Live’, who are putting together four shows based around and about the Games. “It’s been awesome,” said producer Sabine Kratschmar. “We spotted the event via its amazing social media activity, and we have had so much fun putting our two presenters through the various challenges - I wonder how long it will take for them to forgive me!

“What a fantastic event this is; everyone was so helpful, friendly, and fun, and as a team we’ve had a wonderful experience, and will make four great programmes highlighting the Games, and Llanwrtyd Wells - this is a fabulous showcase for Wales, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves having fun in a friendly environment; it’s perfect for families.”

Not even persistent rain on Sunday could stop visitors from home and abroad turning up for the Green Events organised annual World Bog Snorkelling Championship, which is included as part of the World Alternative Games every other year. We are very proud of the events we organise in Llanwrtyd Wells, none more so than the Bog Snorkelling, the World Alternative Games, and Man versus Horse earlier in the year,” said Gordon Green, the driving force behind launching these events.

“We attract thousands of visitors, and the World Alternative Games this year has had enormous interest from TV stations oversees which is a fantastic advert for all that’s good about Llanwrtyd Wells, and the surrounding areas,” he said. “People visit us, and then go off and explore other parts of Wales, and we’re proud of that.

“If we had more support from Welsh tourism bodies there’s no limit to what we could achieve: with some sponsorship and funding, we really could reach out much further, attract even more visitors, and achieve much more media attention at home and abroad,.”

The next World Alternative Games will be in August 2020, but Bog Snorkelling will be back, as usual, next year.