THE Commonwealth Youth Games were held in the Isle of Man in September and proved to be a huge success.

The event was officially opened by His Royal Highness the Earl of Wessex, Prince Edward – the vice patron of the Commonwealth Games Federation – at a spectacular opening ceremony at the Bowl in Douglas.

Athletes from 63 nations competed in the games which featured seven sports.

England topped the medal table with 37 gold medals and Australia took second place with 29.

Manx swimmer Grant Halsall was the pride of the home nation, winning three medals – two silver medals and a bronze medal.

The event ended with a closing ceremony at the Villa Marina in Douglas which gave the competitors a chance to relax.

Motorcycle stunt ace Steve Colley entertained the athletes and officials and later in the evening guitarist Davy Knowles and band performed the Commonwealth Youth Games anthem Reach Higher.

There was also a display by Samoan fire dancers as Samoa is the host of  the 2015 games.
 
Athletics legend Dame Kelly Holmes visited the Island during the games and the event's mascot - Tosha the Manx cat - was an ever present figure during the competition.

For full coverage from the Commonwealth Youth Games click here.

This story is part of isleofman.com's Review of the Year 2011.