Cheating scandal rocks world stone skimming championships

One contestant from 2023 takes part in the the stone skimming competition which has taken place on the island of Easdale for 42 years

The world stone skimming championships have been rocked by a cheating scandal, after several competitors were disqualified for tampering.

More than 2,200 people, from 27 countries, attended this year's event on the tiny island of Easdale off the west coast of Scotland.

Rules state that stones must come from naturally occurring island slate, however some were found to have been ground into a "suspiciously circular" shape to help them bounce on water.

Organiser Dr Kyle Mathews told BBC News that the offenders had "held their hands up" and apologised.

Entrants choose their own stones and judges use a measuring device, the "ring of truth", to ensure they are no bigger than three inches in diameter.

Each competitor is allowed three skims and stones must bounce at least twice on water before sinking.

Stones are measured by judges using the "ring of truth"

Dr Matthews, also known as the "Toss Master", told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland that judges heard "rumours and murmurings of some nefarious deeds".

"There was a little bit of stone doctoring," he said.

"They had shaped it so that it was perfectly circular and fitted our three inch measurer.

"As it's a piece of metal, I don't think we can blame it too much.

"The problem was we didn't just notice at the time that they were suspiciously circular."

The rules state stones can only be picked from naturally occurring slate

Jonathan Jennings was the overall winner of this year's event

Dr Matthews said lessons had been learned and they would "move on to an even greater event next year".

Entrant Jonathan Jennings went on to victory last week as the contest's first American winner, skimming his stones a cumulative distance of 177m.

The event was first organised in 1983 by island resident Albert Baker and after a break was revived in 1997 by community group Eilean Eisdeal.

The contest is staged in a former slate quarry that was flooded by a tidal wave in 1881.

It is run by volunteers and the proceeds support local community projects and charities. Last year it raised £15,000.

Easdale is the smallest permanently inhabited island of the Inner Hebrides with a population of about 60 people.