Big Ben right on time with overall trophy at 2025 Blairgowrie & Rattray Games

Blairgowrie, Scotland – September 7, 2025 – Winning both light Open music events, Ben Duncan of Edinburgh won the aggregate trophy in the senior events at the 2025 Blairgowrie & Rattray Highland Games, which featured the usual large entry of solo pipers for a final run through of tunes before the Northern Meeting at Inverness.

Sandy Cameron of Roy Bridge, Scotland, won the Open Piobaireachd, and Surrey, British Columbia’s Cameron Bonar won the B-Grade Piobaireachd.

The games require senior pipers to be members of the Competing Pipers Association and adjudicators to be members of the UK’s Solo Piping Judges Association. Both groups are expected to adhere to reciprocal policies that disallow pupils from playing for teachers and teachers from judging pupils.

The weather was challenging, with light showers throughout the morning and wet conditions in the afternoon.

Like most piping competitions organized by experienced pipers, Stuart Samson ensured that the events ran smoothly with excellent judging and stewarding.

Open
Piobaireachd (15 entered)
1st Sandy Cameron
2nd Willie Rowe, Fielding, New Zealand
3rd Matt Pantaleoni, St. Louis, Missouri
4th Sarah Muir, Glasgow
Judges: Lewis Barclay, Murray Henderson

2/4 March (39 entered)
1st Ben Duncan
2nd Bobby Allen, Glasgow
3rd Callum Wynd, Stirling, Scotland
4th Anna Kummerlöw, Kladrum, Germany
Judges: Ian Duncan, Robert Wallace

Strathspey & Reel (39 entered)
1st Ben Duncan
2nd Gordon McCready, Renfrew, Scotland
3rd Bobby Allen
4th Cameron Bonar
Judges: Ian Duncan, Robert Wallace

B-Grade Piobaireachd (24 entered)
1st Cameron Bonar
2nd Bobby Durning, Carrolton, Texas
3rd Calum Carn, Wellington, New Zealand
4th Andrew Hall, Glasgow
5th Callum Wynd
Judges: Euan Anderson, Derek Fraser

C-Grade
Piobaireachd (18 entered)
1st John McElmurry, Pomeroy, Northern Ireland
2nd Catriona Norman
3rd Stuart Robinson, Galashiels, Scotland
4th Liam Nicolson, Sydney
5th Scott MacLean
Judges: Peter Hunt, Logan Tannock

MSR (20 entered)
1st Fraser Maitland
2nd John McElmurry
3rd Gregor MacDonald
4th Scott Garden
Judges: Robert Barnes, Jack Taylor

Junior
Under 18
Piobaireachd
1st Chris Drummond, Bathgate, Scotland
2nd Maggie McConnachie, Christchurch
3rd Douglas Baird, Torphichen, Scotland
4th Kai Hay, Buckhaven, Scotland
Judges: Robert Barnes, Jack Taylor

2/4 March
1st Douglas Baird
2nd Kai Hay
3rd Maggie McConnachie
4th Chris Drummond
Judges: Lewis Barclay, Murray Henderson

Strathspey & Reel
1st Kai Hay
2nd Chris Drummond
3rd Douglas Baird
4th Maggie McConnachie
Judges: Lewis Barclay, Murray Henderson