He and other young players were asked to be ‘medal mates’ at the tennis competition this week.
That means they attend the medal ceremonies and are responsible for carrying the medals for the person presenting them to the winners.
Jack was tasked with handling the men’s team gold medals at yesterday’s tennis event.
“It gives me a bit of inspiration (seeing the medals), and it makes you want to play more. It motivates me. I want to play at the Island Games now,” he said.
Pictured: Jack at the men’s team tennis medal ceremony on Monday evening.
The idea of ‘medal mates’ is that they are children who are involved in the sports at which they are helping.
Children like Jack who are already performing well at their chosen sports, and those who are much earlier in their training, have a number of duties to carry out to ensure the medal ceremonies are all managed according to the Island Games rules.
The children either have a cushion or a tray which holds the medals.
They must be at the venue, at the right time, in the right place, to be given their instructions ahead of the medal ceremonies. Some competitions will run overtime, as the tennis did on Monday evening meaning the children had to wait an hour before helping out at the event.
The Island Games organisers wanted to involve children as much as possible to try and encourage their interest in sport.