SINCE ceasing operations two weeks ago, the impact of Blue Islands’ sudden collapse is still being felt, hitting locals’ finances significantly and leaving plans in tatters.
With such a huge name in the Jersey travel industry going down, we’ve already seen the profound effects it’s had across many aspects of Island life, and sport is among those to fall victim.
As it’s all still coming to light two weeks on, I’ve seen just how far and wide the impact has been on the local sporting community, with a vast range of clubs and sports feeling the hit.
Blue Islands collapse “another dagger” to inter-insular swimming competitions
By now, it’s no secret that Jersey punches well above its weight in many sports, but swimming has long been one of the Island’s crown jewels in terms of talent and accolades to make their impact on some of the biggest stages.
It’s been a huge year for the sport, from Filip Nowacki hitting new heights to make his mark and break records for both Jersey and the GB squad, to Jersey winning an astronomical 33 medals, including 13 golds, at Orkney 2025’s Island Games, which has put this Island on the map as a force to be reckoned with.
However, trouble arose from Blue Islands’ sudden collapse, with the annual Channel Islands Championships left hanging in the balance as a result. Fortunately, late alternatives were discovered to ensure the prestigious competition went ahead, but the club has taken a toll.
“The annual Channel Islands Championships took place last week, and that was all a bit chaotic. With the suddenness of Blue Islands ceasing trading, everyone at the club was scrambling to find alternatives, as we had 48 swimmers going over,” said Nathan Jegou, head coach of the Tigers Swimming Club.
“We just managed to find late alternatives. When things like this happen, the kids take the brunt of it, so we always make sure we do what we can so they don’t miss out on these opportunities.”
With those flights going by the wayside and the late alternative fights adding to the costs, this has left a financial toll on the local club that has ramifications for the future.
“Fortunately, as we’re a charitable organisation, we have a good reserve fund as all the money is reinvested into the club. However, this turn of events has caused a hole in the accounts, which changes our plans slightly, as the club has lost £8,000 and our insurance doesn’t cover airlines collapsing,” Jegou continued.
“Aurigny and Loganair have been brilliant, but the inter-island travel we have is another dagger for participating in Guernsey’s competitions. We hold this event in November to make it cheaper and more accessible for hotels and flights, but the growing costs and complexity of organising trips between the Islands is giving clubs another reason not to compete in inter-island events.
“We’re already doing less inter-insular competitions due to rising costs, and we could have done a Level 2 meet in the UK for a fraction of the cost.
“This makes clubs question if this is worth it, but we don’t want inter-insular competitions to die, as they’re so full of history and seen as integral to local sport. This is another knock on sport, and we’re sorry for all the staff who have lost jobs at this difficult time.
“Reducing these competitions is also a dagger to local economies. To have a team of more than 40 travelling across is great for business, as there’s hotel reservations, meals out and all the other stuff that injects money into local economies, so if these competitions were to cease existing, that would have a big effect.”
Despite the stressful situation, Jegou and the Tigers Swimming Club are hopeful for the future, as the head coach stated: “Hopefully, something positive can come out of this situation, and we hope people realise how important it is to have that link with Guernsey.
“We appreciate the support we’ve received. It’s a big positive that Loganair has stepped in so quickly and fingers crossed local sport won’t suffer more.”
Jets Netball left with huge gap of “over £20,000” in their budget
The successes and conquests of Team Jets are highly publicised, already reaching the summit of Premier League 3 in their first year back after years of battling in the regionals.
Under the tutelage of performance lead Serena Kersten, who reached the sport’s highest peak to captain England and win Commonwealth gold, everything on the court points to a promising future for the sport.
While everything looks positive in their performance, it’s been an eye-opening couple of weeks for the local outfit since the news broke out, as Kersten detailed: “We have been left with a huge gap of over £20,000 from this situation, which has to be recovered in some way or another.
“The government has been very supportive in trying to offer help in gathering these funds and we’ve connected with Loganair very quickly.
“Re-booking our travel has been a new experience, especially with the lateness of the bookings we’re making. As any sports team knows, we like to make all our bookings early to try to get the best rates, so now we’ve had to try to figure out different routes and ways of getting to places, which has been very difficult.
“What’s been great is we really do feel supported, people have come out and offered their help, our main sponsor Evelyn Partners have been very helpful through this difficult time, as well as the government and Loganair, who have really made an effort to support us.”
Effects of this are already being felt, with the junior sides taking the hit of delaying commencing their season, due to a lack of alternatives on offer to travel on short notice a couple weeks ago.
“We’ve already delayed our juniors in starting their season, and as they weren’t able to get across a couple of weeks ago. It’s vital to get juniors across to the UK and off-Island to offer opportunities, as changing the environment is critical for their development,” said Kersten.
“As someone who had to leave Jersey to reach the top level, I’m super-passionate about providing such opportunities and I feel we have a responsibility to do so.”
Such a sizeable gap in the Jets’ setup certainly has an impact, but Kersten is determined to navigate all avenues and “think creatively” to try to offer as much as possible: “We have already had to trim down what we’re offering the Under-14 and Under-16 sides from the financial forecast, so I’m not prepared to trim any more, especially since they work so hard.
“The Island’s youth is our future, so investing in them is priceless – I see it as an absolute necessity. I don’t see further cuts as an option, so I’m prepared to explore all avenues and think creatively to work around this.
“This isn’t ideal, but I’m committed and it’s important to finish the season for all teams. Everyone puts in so much effort, so I’m sure we’ll find a way.”
The Evelyn Partners Jets are still offering sponsorship opportunities, so if interested, you can send an email to performance@netball.je.
Young snooker prodigy now has to “pay the price”
Jersey’s rising snooker star Archie Greier has been on top form recently, having surpassed the huge milestone of producing the very first century break of his young career so far in a competitive match, as well as competing at the Snooker900 event and being interviewed on Pluto TV.
Everything is riding high for the young Caesarean, but the Blue Islands’ end of operations has complicated travel, as he benefited from the airline’s flight funding programme, which came as a huge support, saving “up to around £2,000” a year in travel costs.
The young star will have to continue on his snooker journey without this support, making for higher costs in his pursuit of top level snooker as travelling abroad to compete is “huge”.
“Blue Islands’ flight funding scheme had a huge impact on us, as it helped us book more tournaments and handle the costs, so it’s a real shame,” said Howard Greier, father to the local cueist.
“Travelling to the UK is huge for Archie – he’s the only child here playing snooker at such a level. Aaron Canavan, who is the Channel Islands’ top snooker player, said you have to go to the UK and compete against your peers, so it’s important he travels over and plays in more competitions.
“Although costs will surely increase, we’re going to continue to encourage Archie on his snooker journey. He was very upset when the news broke, but we’re simply going to have to pay the price and make sure he continues to get the experience he needs to keep developing.”
The family haven’t come out unscathed, as a booking made with Blue Islands in January for tournaments of approximately £1,200 in total won’t go out, forcing the family to re-book and make alternative arrangements.
Fortunately, the bookings were paid for via credit card, and he has already applied to try gain refunds.
In addition to this, one of the employees who dealt with the flight funding programme had got in touch on the afternoon of Blue Islands’ day of demise, asking to arrange a promotional shoot for the programme.
This just went to show that the airline’s workforce was “completely in the dark” according to Howard Greier, and the airline’s collapse and loss of jobs “have really upset the family”.
Archie Greier and his family extended their gratitude to sponsors Jersey Sport, The Summit Group, The C I Group (Conservatory Insulations) and Le Gallais & Luce for their continued support through this period.
Inaugural junior Padel inter-insular postponed, affecting local clubs
On the weekend of Blue Islands’ sudden demise, history was almost made for the booming sport of padel, as Jersey and Guernsey’s junior Under-14 and Under-18 sides were set to come together and compete for inter-insular glory for the first time in the sport.
However, the sudden cease of operations came as a huge shock, leaving the Jersey squads with no options of getting across at such short notice, putting plans in disarray.
Guernsey Padel Club’s Sara Woolland, who was one of the event’s key organisers, commented on the impact felt by the club: “It was such a massive shame the event couldn’t go ahead. After the huge success the senior events have had, this was a long time coming, so it has been a big disappointment.
“This has left us with a big financial hole as a club, after buying food for 60 people, prizes and producing loads of signage for the event.
“As the sport is governed by the LTA, we don’t benefit from any funding or financial support, so it’s very tough when these things happen. This has knocked us back a bit, but it won’t knock us down.”
Sonia Smith, who helped organise Jersey’s junior sides, gave her side of things, saying: “It’s such a shame. Padel’s been growing so fast lately and, through Carey Olsen’s sponsorship, the development squads have been generating a real buzz.
“Everyone worked so hard to get this off the ground, but to get 16 across on such short notice was simply too much.”
Although it was disappointing not to see this sporting milestone passed, both communities pulled together to make the most of their day, each hosting padel events for the local juniors and making a day of it to boost spirits.
For Jersey’s squads it wasn’t just the inter-insular, as booked flights to many competitions, including County Cup fixtures, are now null and void, resulting in the local club being more than £5,000 out of pocket.
Although they’re already taking steps to try recover some of the lost funds, a sponsor is seen as essential to go forward as there’s “a ticking time bomb” for a sponsor to come onboard before the Faroe Island Games in 2027.
If you’re interested in helping grow the sport even further and come on as a sponsor, then you can send an email to sonia.smith@citap.org.je.
Louise Eden misses out on London International Horse Show
Going further away from more mainstream sports, Louise Eden missed out on making history for Jersey, as her dog was the Channel Islands’ first in history to qualify for the show’s prestigious agility event, which is one of the nation’s finest.
Blue Islands was “brilliant” for flying animals, but with operations now ceased, Eden is left with “no options”.
“I was due to be competing at the London International, but now it’s looking highly unlikely that I’ll be able to go, as there aren’t really any options.
“The only remaining option is to travel by boat, but at this time of year being
so close to Christmas, literally coming back only a few days before, it’s a huge risk that we probably can’t take,” Eden added.
