Kilts in action: Highland Games set for Milford gathering

When it comes to Scottish pride, things get heavy at the Highland Games.

It's an age-old competition with a thoroughly modern following, with No Fame Games, LLC sponsoring its third annual Home Games June 10 at Fino Field in Milford.

"Essentially, it's strong man meets track and field in kilts," said Joshua Mackintosh, chief executive officer of No Fame Games, a business specializing in Scottish heavy athletics and overall strength, with exercises and competitions in the Celtic tradition.

The event is expected to draw athletes of all levels, from relative beginners to champions, and teams representing area gyms and athletic organizations, as well as teams from the Milford fire and police departments.

The competitions will include those central to Highland Games, such as stone lifting, hammer throwing and the one perhaps best known outside Scottish games, the caber toss, the throwing of a large wooden pole.

In addition, the event will feature an opening ceremony with Scottish bagpipes, and a benediction from the game's chieftain of the St. Andrew's Society, which works to preserve Scottish heritage. There will be children's activities, vendors with Celtic craft items, a "try-it" station for adults to test some of their own skills, a tug of war, and the chance to meet stars of the Highland Games world.

Athletes participate wearing traditional kilts, a garment often synonymous with Scottish and other Celtic cultures.

With its beginnings in the Middle Ages, or earlier, the games' present-day form developed around 1745, with the Jacobite Rising, when Prince Charles Edward Stuart fought to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart.

Mackintosh said, "There is debate on the origins of track and field, particularly shot put, but it was used as a way for communities and clans, particularly in Scotland, to have more harmony. To get to know each other more, and to celebrate each other, as well as to test out warriors."

The games found their way across the Atlantic in the 1700s and 1800s, with the arrival of Scottish indentured servants and immigrants. The establishment of Scottish communities brought the popularity of the games from Nova Scotia to the Southern U.S. and beyond.

In all, the codified present-day games evolved to have nine events, tests not only of strength but also of composure, presence and the ability to send an object on a specific trajectory with the use of momentum, of body and mind.

Although in its earliest days, the games were generally considered a man's sport, competitions such as the Milford Highland Games are not limited by gender. "This year, we're going to have over 120 athletes. We are hosting five professional women. Two are professional strongwomen, the strongest in the world in their weight class," Mackintosh said.

Mackintosh added, "Last year, one of the professional women broke a world record with the heavy hammer. This is one thing we are really proud of. We are kind of at the forefront of helping women, particularly the women's class."

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Among the teams is one from Evolve Fitness & Training in Worcester.

John Ruoppo, owner of Evolve Fitness & Training, said, "There are numerous gyms going head-to-head, with five people for each team. Josh reached out to the gyms in the area, which I think is awesome." For the gym, the competition marks a first in the Highland games. "The nice thing is, the weights are a little bit different. The times are a little bit different, so we can be equally competitive. A female can beat a male in the competition."

Emily Hayes of Worcester, a member of the Evolve Fitness & Training team, teaches middle school English in the Worcester school district. "I have never done the Highland games, but what I do is called 'strongman.' "

Hayes said, "I've never competed in the Highland Games specifically, but I've competed in strongman before. So, I've been doing this weightlifting multiple years." This includes stone-to-shoulder, in which Hayes said, "Picture a perfect sphere. You have to bend down, wrap around it in a bear hug and put it on your shoulder."

Hayes said, "It's empowering to be strong. It's empowering to be able to say, 'I can pick this up,' or 'I can carry this over my head.' Not a lot of women compete. I think it's empowering, because being strong makes me feel beautiful."

Amelia Larrubia of Fitchburg, also an Evolve Fitness & Training team member, said, "I started in strength competitions through powerlifting." Larrubia said, "Personally, it's just been something very rewarding in my own life. I love all my hobbies. I have many. Strength training is one prominent in my life; also, to stay actively involved with people I can share interests with."

Larrubia, who works in health care, said, "I feel now more than ever, it's great to be competing, even if I am not at a competitive level. As a trans woman, I'm proud of it, proud to be included and respected as a trans woman. I think it's important for trans people and nonbinary people, that there is still a place in sports for them. There should always be a place for them."

Spencer Tyler, of New Braunfels, Texas, a 2019 Highland Games world champion and holder of five world records of nine game events, participated in the 2022 Milford games and plans to return for this year's games. As a collegiate athlete, Tyler also won several accolades.

Tyler credits a former coach, Quint Melius, with steering him in the direction of the Highland games. "He is soley responsible for getting me into it."

"The games are very much about celebrating Celtic culture," Mackintosh said. "There is a lot of cross-connection with the Irish and basic Celtic cultures. For me, I have Scottish blood. There is a celebration of that heritage ... also, just a lot of fun."

Mackintosh observed, "It's celebrating coming together through strength, and it's incredibly inclusive. We will have people of all diversities coming to throw. All races, sexes and genders."

What: No Fame Games presents the Scottish Highland Home Games

When: 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 10

Where: Fino Field, 80 Granite St., Milford

How much: Free admission. nofamegames.com.

Editor's note: This story has been edited to reflect that there is no whiskey-tasting included in the events.