Record crowds packed into a Moray arena for one of the region’s most popular Highland Games yesterday.
Close to 10,000 people went through the 15th century gates at Gordon Castle to enjoy an afternoon of competition and tradition.
Spectators, eager to watch the events, were packed six-deep round the fences at some points during the afternoon.
With the revived Games in their sixth year, estate owner Angus Gordon Lennox proclaimed he could not have been happier with the day.
He said: “It has been fantastic. We’re really thrilled that so many people have come out to enjoy our country fair and games.
“We’ve probably had a record turnout. There were 8,000 people here last year. We’ve been slowly building it and we could have had up to 10,000 this year, but we won’t know until we’ve checked.”
Polish heavyweight Lukasz Wenta retained his overall champion status from last year.
The East Kilbride resident couldn’t break any records, but was still able to throw the light ball a considerable 53m and matched his best of throwing the 56lb weight over the 16ft bar.
Kyle Randalls powered his way to the novice title, winning every event except the caber. The Grangemouth resident also took the light hammer and heavy hammer wins in the open tournament with throws of 123m and 106m.
There was local success in the fiercely-contested tug of war, with Elgin A beating Mount Blair to the title.
Pipe bands, BMX stunts and live music added to the entertainment staged in the historic castle grounds with highland dancers also adding their flair.
Visitors proudly displayed “I love being a Gordon” stickers to mark their connection to the clan, whose historic home is at the castle.
Once again, the Fochabers event proved popular with tourists eager to get their fix of Scottish tradition.
Mr Lennox said: “This isn’t a profit-making exercise, it costs a lot of money to put on. But we think it’s really important this historic asset is opened up to the world.
“Indeed, this year we’ve had people from all round the world, including Australia, Switzerland, the United States and Germany.”
