The Stone Skimming World Championship Sold Out by Ballot and the Back Wall Has Been Reached Once Since 2002
Easdale Island hosts the championships on Saturday 5 September. Stones must be Easdale slate, under three inches, and must bounce at least twice.
The World Stone Skimming Championships take place on Saturday 5 September on Easdale Island, off Oban in Argyll, in a flooded disused slate quarry the organisers describe as the world's first dedicated stone-skimming arena.
The rules are specific. Stones must be natural Easdale slate and no more than three inches across at the widest point, which removes the possibility of arriving with a manufactured disc. A throw counts only if the stone bounces at least twice. Distance is measured to the point where the stone sinks. To reach the final "Toss Off" round, a skim has to cross the full 63 metres to the back wall of the quarry, which triggers a klaxon.
That 63-metre wall is the event's defining feature and its main problem. Alistair Judkins reached it in 2002 and it is still spoken of as the benchmark, but it is now reached often enough to create ties rather than separate them. In 2025, fifteen competitors all hit the back wall in the main round, and the Open title had to be decided on cumulative distance across three throws: Jonathan Jennings won with 177 metres from throws of 59, 63 and 55. Lucy Wood won the Adult Female category with 48 metres, Izen Bird the Junior Open with 50, and a team called The Unsinkables took the team prize with 456 metres combined.
Entry for 2026 is already closed. Competitor places were allocated by ballot at 5 pounds to enter, with a 20 pound competition ticket for adults and 5 pounds for children once through it. Spectator admission is free. The day runs from a 9am check-in and breakfast to a first toss at 11am, prize-giving at 4:30pm and a ceilidh from 7pm, with a pre-event party on the Friday.
The championships were founded in 1983 by Albert Baker, lapsed, and were revived in 1997 by Eilean Eisdeal, the island's community development group, which still runs it as its principal annual fundraiser. Money goes to the harbour, the community hall, the museum and other island causes.
The 2025 edition also produced a cheating controversy substantial enough to reach the BBC and CBC. For a competition decided by a klaxon on a quarry wall, that is roughly the level of scrutiny the format now attracts.