Island arena will be Welsh paintball HQ Aug 17 2004
By Matt Withers, Daily Post
PAINTBALL is set to gain a major foot-hold in North Wales, with plans for an indoor arena providing a home for the national team.
A planning application for the arena, hosting the stress-busting sport, is likely to be submitted soon to Anglesey council, with a view to opening in two years.
The arena is pencilled in to be the HQ for the Welsh national paintballing team.
As a potentially major tourist attraction, it could be in line for an investment grant from the Welsh Assembly.
A dry run will take place at the North Wales All Sports Challenge, a huge exhibition of sports and events taking place on Anglesey in October.
The event will occupy 130 acres of Anglesey Showground, with the battlefields specially constructed to give spectators a grandstand view of the action.
Organiser Tony Segui said: "Forget about army-style camouflage and pseudo-para military-style games.
"We are taking Rambo out of the woods and turning the game into a professional sport.
"It's fast, exciting and very demanding. It can be over in a few minutes but it could also last an hour depending on the fitness, daring and accuracy of the teams."
The game sees two teams of ten, armed with air-guns and 500 rounds of ammo apiece, blasting each other with paint in a bid to capture the enemy's flag.
It has become popular for team-building exercises for business, encour-aging leadership and strategic thinking.
A netted arena will be built with obstacles placed around to offer cover and strategic opportunity.
The two teams are given white boiler suits and safety visors, along with airguns with a range of 100 metres.
The fastest and fittest are usually at the vanguard of the assault, while those with a steady hand act as snipers to pick off the opposition.
The object of the war is to splatter the opposition with paint marks. Once they are marked they are "dead" and have to retire to the "dead zone".
In the process of eliminating each other, the aim is to get into the enemy camp, pinch its flag and make it back to base.
A maximum of 32 teams can take part during the All Sport's planned two-day event.
Another same-size arena will be built to allow members of the public to form their own teams and have a go.
Mr Segui said: "All teams will be given a safety talk, told how to fire the guns and given hints on strategy and technique.
"If teams are really fired up they can visit, before taking part, websites where tactics can be discussed.
"It is one of the fastest growing sports in the UK, and one of the safest. There are big plans in North Wales for paintballing to develop." . Paintball is one of more than 60 events planned for the North Wales All Sport Challenge on October 16 and 17. For further information about the competition ring 01248 717903 or contact
info@allsportchallenge.com.
mattwithers@dailypost.co.uk
