Visitors flock to annual Sark sheep race

Sheep race with teddy bear jockeys tied to their backs

The annual sheep race on the Channel Island of Sark returned this weekend.

Hundreds of people flocked to the island for The Sark Sheep Racing Festival, which sees sheep race with teddy bear jockeys tied to their backs.

The event also serves as the main fundraiser for the Sark Professor Charles Saint Medical Trust which subsidises prescriptions on the island.

A number of sheep took part in a total of seven races, where they completed a 50m (164ft) course with hay bales acting as jumps.

Robin and her dad herd the sheep

The event relies on a number of volunteers, including 12-year-old Robin, who had the responsibility of releasing the sheep.

Despite her age, she said she had been helping with the sheep race for "quite a while" because "my dad is the farmer".

Robin said the key to a good racing sheep was making sure it was "well fed".

"It’s keeping them well fed, and sometimes it helps if they haven’t lambed maybe the year before.

"Just in normally in good condition as well," she added.

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