Cornwall to host international mining competition

Cornwall has been chosen to host an international mining competition.

The 47th International Mining Games is set to take place over two days at the King Edward Mine Museum in Troon, near Camborne.

The competition consists of seven events including jackleg drilling, hand drilling and gold panning.

Trustee Carol Richards said the competition "celebrates Cornwall's mining industry".

The museum is due to welcome 45 teams from across the globe including Australia, the USA, Canada and Germany.

A Cornish team, consisting of students and alumni from the Camborne School of Mines, will also compete.

The women's and co-ed competition will take place on Friday 21 March with the men's and alumni competition happening on Saturday 22 March, between 8:00 and 16:00 GMT.

The county previously hosted the event in 2012 at the King Edward Mine.

The tournament was created in 1978 in memory of 91 miners who died in the Sunshine Mine disaster in the USA in 1972, the King Edward Mine Museum said.

It said it most recently took place in Montana in the USA, in 2024.

Ms Richards said the museum was "delighted to be hosting the event"

She added: "It chimes with our twin aims of celebrating Cornwall's mining industry in ways that increase knowledge and ignite curiosity among people of all ages and backgrounds, and of promoting education in geoscience, geology and mining".

Ms Richards said there was "no better place" to spark an interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) than at the museum.

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