What to know
- Simon Fraser University’s Pipe Band won the World Pipe Championships in Glasgow, reclaiming their title from 2009.
- They’re the first group from outside the United Kingdom to win the world title since 2010 and only the fourth non-English team overall.
- This is the seventh time SFU’s Pipe Band has won the World Championships.
After 17 years, Simon Fraser University’s Pipe Band has reclaimed their title as world champions.
The Burnaby, B.C. university competed against 200 other bands in the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, becoming the first group outside of the United Kingdom to take home the top prize since 2010.
“It has been a long time coming. We certainly knew we played really well and we were hoping to get a strong finish. To actually win is stunning and a pretty huge achievement,” pipe major Alan Bevan says in a press release.
“The standard of competition has been climbing every year, it was a really strong field, super competitive.”
This is the seventh time Simon Fraser University (SFU) has won the world championships. They previously won in 1995, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2008, and 2009. SFU’s Pipe Band came second nine other times.
Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated the band on their historic achievement, posting to his X account, “211 bands from 14 countries — and Canadians are taking home the trophy. Congratulations to the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band. The first champions from outside the UK in 16 years.”
SFU’s Pipe Band and the 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band from Campbellville, Ont. are the only two bagpipe musical groups in Canada that play at Grade 1, the highest level.
Aside from competing, SFU’s Pipe Band have recorded 13 live and studio albums. They’ve performed at world renowned venues such as Lincoln Centre for the Performing Arts in New York City, the Sydney Opera House, Carnegie Hall, and the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.
