August continues the theme of July, with another month focused on sporting events. Mauritius enjoys moderate sea and air temperatures at this time of year, making this month an ideal time for partaking in strenuous challenges. This is when you can expect the lowest temperatures of the year (around 20°C on the coast) with a fresh prevailing wind blowing over the island from the east.

1 - 2 August: Ultra Trail Raidlight Beachcomber

Sponsored by Mauritius hotels group Beachcomber and French trail running brand Raidlight, this second edition of the UTRB is one of the most challenging annual events to be held on the island. The weekend features three races: the 10km Trail du Souffleur, the 42km Trail de la Perruche and the quad-killing 120km Trail des 7 Couleur, with a maximum altitude of 828 metres and total ascent of 4,500 metres.

1 – 9 August: Indian Ocean Island Games

OK, so these take place on Réunion island, not on Mauritius, but we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to let our readers know about this major regional multi-sport event. The Indian Ocean Island Games or Jeux des Iles are played every four years, with participants from Reunion, Seychelles, Mayotte, Maldives, Madagascar, Comoros, and of course, Mauritius. This year will see a total of 14 sports represented, including athletics, basketball, boxing, cycling , sailing, swimming and judo. Air Mauritius operates frequent inter-island flights between Mauritius and Réunion island.

4 – 11 August: Mauritius Attitude Freeride Challenge

The Attitude Mauritius Freeride League is a windsurfing and kitesurfing competition which takes place between June and November and is open to both amateurs and professionals. As part of this, the Freeride Challenge is a team race which will be contested over four different spots from the north to south of Mauritius, all of which are long distance slalom courses designed to minimise upwind / maximise downwind speed sailing on flat water.

28 – 30 August: Rhythm on Fire

Africa and India are brought together through a new Mauritian ballet which will be presented on stage at the Mahatama Ghandi Institute in late August. Rhythm on Fire is an ambitious new project by dancer and choreographer Anna Patten which showcases the rhythms and dance of both continents and includes twenty professional dancers, ten musicians and singers and the incredible skills of master percussionist and tabla player Shakti Shane Ramchurn.

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Photos: Off-road running, Indian Ocean Games, Kitesurfer, Indian Dancer