QUOITS, equine elegance and ageing but much-loved cars were among the attractions at a North-East museum at the weekend.

Beamish Museum has become the traditional home to the World Quoits Championship.

For only the second time in the 15 years since the National Quoits Association (NQA) moved its main meeting to the colliery village site at Beamish, County Durham, the wet weather prevented completion of the championship.

Although the pairs event reached a conclusion on Saturday, downpours forced the cancellation of the singles championship during the round before the quarter-final stage of the knockout competition yesterday.

NQA secretary Charlie Walker said the conditions became too problematic on the quoits pitches.

He said: "Unfortunately in quoits, if the clay bed holding the hob, or pin, gets too slippy, it becomes too dangerous for people to play.

"It is a fair-weather game and definitely not a rainy day event.

"We have been here since 1989 and it is only the second time we have had to abandon it."

Hostilities resume for the surviving 16 players from the 120 entrants at the reserve venue, at The King's Arms, in Wolviston, near Stockton, on Sunday.

Paul Mendelsohn, from Fylingthorpe Quoits Club, in North Yorkshire, and playing partner Neil Atkinson, of Barnard Castle Quoits Club, County Durham, won Saturday's doubles final, beating Mick Patterson and Alan Chedzey, of Barnacle Bill Quoits Club, from South Bank, Middlesbrough, 21 points to eight.

Apart from the traditional pub game of quoits, Beamish also staged a display of Cleveland Bay show horses, a now-threatened breed, and an array of vintage British-made Alvis cars from across the country, on its events showfield.

Published: 12/07/2004