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2004
AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP IN SINGAPORE |
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2004
AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP IN SINGAPORE |
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FINLAND’S VIRTANEN, USA’S PLUHOWSKY WIN 40TH AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP
| SINGAPORE — Kai Virtanen of Finland and Shannon Pluhowsky of the United States are the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup champions. Virtanen went into the quarterfinals at Superbowl SAFRA Mount Faber as the No. 8 seed, but he deposed top-seeded Jason Belmonte of Australia and No. 5 seed Yahav Rabin of Israel to move into the title match. The 35-year-old computer engineer and World Cup rookie brought the title back to Finland after a one-year absence by overcoming No. 2 seed Petter Hansen of Norway, 2 games to 1 (258-208, 216-233, 258-242). It was a successful comeback for Virtanen, who quit international bowling for five years but started training and competing again this past spring. “I bowled with Team Finland in Singapore in the 1991 World Championships and won a bronze medal, so I have good feelings about being here,” Virtanen said. Hansen had a chance to win by getting either a strike or spare in the 10th frame of the final game, but he left a disastrous 2-8-10 split instead and failed to convert it. Virtanen admitted he was taken aback to win that way. “I had hoped he’d leave something on his first ball, to force him to shoot for a spare and make things a little harder for him. But I never hope for that kind of bad luck for anyone.” Hansen ousted hometown favorite and No. 6 seed Remy Ong of Singapore in the first semifinal match, 2 games to 1 (259-279, 248-214, 257-210), to advance to the title bout. His wish to bowl Virtanen for the title came true when the Finn defeated Rabin in the other semifinal match, 2 games to 1 (200-215, 214-194, 238-220). “The Finns are so good that if I beat one of them, then I will know I bowled very well indeed,” Hansen had said. “Kai and I had promised each other we’d be in the title match together, and here we were.” |
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In the women’s division, No. 2 seed Pluhowsky became the third woman ever to win the title twice by dethroning defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada, 2 games to 0 (236-200, 234-185). Pluhowsky advanced to the championship round by dismissing No. 3 seed Liza Del Rosario of the Philippines in the first semifinal match of the day, also by a 2-0 score (259-226, 269-169). Ryan-Ciach, the No. 8 seed, earned her berth by outlasting No. 5 seed Yoselin Leon of Puerto Rico, 2 games to 1 (279-190, 193-257, 208-193). Pluhowsky’s win avenged her loss to Ryan-Ciach in last year’s World Cup finals in Honduras. The 22-year-old U.S. national amateur champion admitted earlier in the week that the loss motivated her in Singapore. “I learned a lot from my performance last year. In fact, I think I could have bowled better the entire season. My loss last year was a driving force for this season.” Ryan-Ciach, the 33-year-old Canadian national champion, could have become the second person in World Cup history to win back-to-back titles. “I thought I had an edge going into the finals right after the semifinals, because I was loose and warmed up,” she said. “For whatever reason, I didn’t have the same ball reaction today. I lost my pin carry in the second match with Shannon. I made good shots, but kept leaving 4-pins and 10-pins, and it’s difficult to adjust for that kind of carry.” Ryan-Ciach achieved some satisfaction, however, as she and Jack Guay won the Bent Petersen Trophy for best combined country performance. Guay finished tied for fifth in the men’s division. |
A record 95 nations competed in this year’s AMF World Cup (93 men, 73 women). The AMF World Cup is the world’s largest annual international sports championship in terms of number of participating countries. AMF Bowling Worldwide Inc., the founder and principal sponsor of the AMF Bowling World Cup, is the world’s largest owner and operating of bowling centers. It is also a leader in the manufacturing and marketing of bowling and billiards products. More information about AMF is available on the Internet at www.amf.com. Tournament results are available at www.amfbowlingworldcup.com.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl
SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Semifinal results, Women:
No.
2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 3 Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, 2 games to 0
(259-226, 269-169)
No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, def. No. 5 Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, 2 games
to 1 (279-190, 193-257, 208-193).
Championship round results and World Cup title,
Women:
No. 2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 2 games to 0
(236-200, 234-185).
Shannon Pluhowsky, USA is the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup women’s champion.
Semifinal results, Men:
No. 2 Petter Hansen, Norway, def. No. 6 Remy Ong, Singapore, 2 games to
1 (259-279, 248-214, 257-210)
No. 8 Kai Virtanen, Finland, def. No. 5 Yahav Rabin, Israel, 2 games to 1
(200-215, 214-194, 238-220)
Championship round results, Men:
No. 8 Kai Virtanen, Finland, def. No. 2 Petter Hansen, Norway, 2 games
to 1 (258-208, 216-233, 258-242)
Kai Virtanen, Finland is the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup men’s champion.
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USA'S
SHANNON PLUHOWSKY RECLAIMS AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP CROWN SINGAPORE - Shannon Pluhowsky of the United States, the 2002 AMF Bowling World Cup women's champion, became just the third woman ever to win the title twice with a 2 games to 0 victory over defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada (236-200, 234-185). No. 2 seed Pluhowsky advanced to the championship round at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber by dismissing No. 3 seed Liza Del Rosario of the Philippines in the first semifinal match of the day, also by a 2-0 score (259-226, 269-169). Ryan-Ciach, the No. 8 seed, earned her berth by outlasting the No. 5 seed, Yoselin Leon of Puerto Rico, 2 games to 1 (279-190, 193-257, 208-193).Pluhowsky's victory avenged her loss to Ryan-Ciach in last year's World Cup finals in Honduras. The 22-year-old U.S. national amateur champion admitted earlier in the week that the loss motivated her performance this year. "I learned a lot from my performance last year. In fact, I think I could have bowled better the entire season. My loss last year was a driving force for this season. "It also helped that today, unlike last year, we bowled our finals right after the semifinals. We didn't have to wait for the men's semis to be finished, and it helped me not to have five hours of down time. I could keep practicing from my first match on, which allowed me to be loose and ready for the match." |
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Ryan-Ciach, the
33-year-old Canadian national champion, could have become
only the second person in World Cup history to win back-to-back titles. "I
thought I had an edge going into the finals right after the semifinals,
because I was loose and warmed up," she said. "For whatever reason, I didn't
have the same ball reaction today. I lost my pin carry in the second match
with Shannon. I made good shots, but kept leaving 4-pins and 10-pins and it'
s difficult to adjust for that kind of carry.
Pluhowsky averaged 249.5 for the day while giving the United States its 13th
World Cup title (7 men, 6 women).
The men's semifinal and championship rounds also conclude Sunday. Singapore'
s Remy Ong, the No. 6 seed, takes on No. 2 seed Petter Hansen of Norway in
the opening semifinal pairing, while No. 5 seed Yahav Rabin of Israel and
No. 8 seed Kai Virtanen of Finland face off in the second match. The
semifinal winners meet for the title at 4:30 p.m. Singapore time.
40th AMF World
Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Semifinal results, Women:
No. 2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 3 Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, 2
games to 0 (259-226, 269-169)
No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, def. No. 5 Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, 2
games to 1 (279-190, 193-257, 208-193).
Championship round results and World Cup title, Women:
No. 2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 2 games
to 0 (236-200, 234-185).
Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, is the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup women's champion.
KAI VIRTANEN SHOOTS 300 TO HEADLINE QUARTERFINAL WINNERS AT AMF WORLD CUP
SINGAPORE - Kai Virtanen of Finland, the men's No. 8 seed, stunned
frontrunner Jason Belmonte of Australia with a perfect game and advance out
of the quarterfinals of the AMF Bowling World Cup.
Virtanen, a 35-year-old engineer, recorded the eighth perfect game of this
year's tournament when a 10-pin toppled lazily just before being swept off
the pindeck. "This is my 17th perfect game but the first one I didn't see
happen, because I had turned away figuring the 10-pin was going to remain
standing," he said. "Then I got back to my seat and my coach Sami [Luoto]
was high-fiving me and everyone started yelling. I had to see it on the
replay to believe it."
The 300-247 victory over Belmonte in the first game was the forerunner of a
2 games to 0 victory over the tournament's top seed (300-247, 228-219).
Insult added to injury for the Australian when he left the 4-6-7-10 split in
the 10th frame of the second game while needing a spare or strike to win and
force the match to a third game.
"I thought I threw it well, but it just kind of ran up on the pocket a
little," Belmonte said. "I didn't expect that split from that ball."
Virtanen's perfect game was the 27th 300 game in World Cup history but the
first ever recorded in either the stepladder format or the current knockout
format.
Virtanen squares off against No. 5 seed Yahav Rabin of Israel in the
semifinals. Rabin defeated No. 4 seed Chester King of the Philippines 2
games to 1 (179-257, 237-236, 257-235). The other semifinal match pairs
hometown favorite and No. 6 seed Remy Ong with No. 2 seed Petter Hansen of
Norway. Hansen made short work of Belgium's Yves Van Eyken, 2 games to 0,
with a near-perfect effort (279-203, 257-240).
Ong thwarted Canada's Jack Guay, 2 games to 1 (206-193, 204-279, 223-218) to
keep alive Singapore's hopes for its first World Cup title. Ong had to
regroup from an open frame in his final game and then double in the 10th to
defeat Guay.
"At this level, concentration is so important," said Ong. "I think I will
learn from my mistakes today. He (Jack) struck out to force me to strike. I
would like to be in that position any day, finishing first and forcing the
other person to strike.
"This is a matter of self-achievement for me. I was so close in 2002. My
dream has always been to win a world title. Hopefully, it will not be long
until that happens."
In the women's division, Puerto Rico's Yoselin Leon, Liza Del Rosario of the
Philippines, Shannon Pluhowsky of the U.S. and defending champion Kerrie
Ryan-Ciach of Canada advanced to the semifinal round.
Ryan-Ciach, who grabbed the final seed from Singapore's Valerie Teo by just
three pins Friday, devastated No. 1 seed Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia, 2
games to 0 (201-197, 235-225). Zulkifli has never won a head-to-head match
in seven World Cup tries.
"The match was as tough as I thought it would be," Ryan-Ciach said. "Shalin
never gave up and gave it everything she had; she just didn't get the pin
carry."
A spectator tried to console Zulkifli after the match, telling her she did
her best, to which Zulkifli responded, "My best just isn't good enough."
Ryan-Ciach will take on No. 5 seed Leon in Sunday's semifinal round at
SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber. Leon dispatched Australia's Ann-Maree Putney,
the No. 4 seed, 2 games to 1 (189-279, 238-160, 205-200) on Saturday. The
other pairing pits No. 3 seed Del Rosario against No. 2 seed Pluhowsky, the
2002 World Cup champion.
Del Rosario defeated No. 6 seed Helen Johnsson of Sweden, 2 games to 0
(278-203, 232-189), while Pluhowsky had little trouble with No. 7 seed Laura
Rhoney of Scotland (223-204 and 231-163).
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Quarterfinal results, Women:
No. 5 Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, def. No. 4 Ann-Maree Putney, Australia, 2
games to 1 (189-279, 238-160, 205-200)
No. 3 Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, def. No. 6 Helen Johnsson, Sweden, 2
games to 0 (278-203, 232-189)
No. 2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 7 Laura Rhoney, Scotland, 2 games to
0 (223-204, 231-163)
No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, def. No. 1 Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 2
games to 0 (201-197, 235-225)
Quarterfinal results, Men
No. 5 Yahav Rabin, Israel, def. No. 4 Chester King, Philippines, 2 games to
1 (179-257, 237-236, 257-235)
No. 6 Remy Ong, Singapore, def. No. 3 Jack Guay, Canada, 2 games to 1
(206-193, 204-279, 223-218)
No. 2 Petter Hansen, Norway, def. No. 7 Yves Van Eyken, Belgium, 2 games to
0 (279-203, 257-240)
No. 8 Kai Virtanen, Finland, def. No. 1 Jason Belmonte, Australia, 2 games
to 0 (300-247, 228-219)
Note: earlier agate copy incorrectly reported the Ryan-Ciach vs. Zulkifli
scores as 223-204 and 231-163, with Ryan-Ciach winning 20 games to 0, and
the Del Rosario vs. Johnsson score as 278-232 and 203-189)
RYAN-CIACH
OUSTS TOP-SEEDED ZULKIFLI AT AMF WORLD CUP QUARTERFINALS
SINGAPORE - Puerto Rico's Yoselin Leon, Liza Del Rosario of the Philippines,
Shannon Pluhowsky of the U.S. and defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of
Canada advanced to the women's semifinal round of the 40th AMF Bowling World
Cup with victories in Saturday's quarterfinals.
No. 5 seed Leon bounced back from a 279-189 drubbing by the No. 4 seed,
Australia's Ann-Maree Putney, in the opening game to capture her match 2
games to 1 (189-279, 238-160, 205-200). "I just had to erase that game from
my mind, tell myself I still had two games left to win, and start again as
if it was the very first game," Leon said
No. 3 seed Del Rosario handily defeated Sweden's Helen Johnsson, the No. 6
seed, 2 games to 0 (278-203, 232-189). "I was very nervous, but when I
rolled my practice balls, I was very relaxed. Chester [King, the Philippines
' men's bowler who is also in the quarterfinal round] reminded me I needed
to stay that way to carry."
No. 7 seed Laura Rhoney of Scotland fell to No. 2 seed Pluhowsky, also 2
games to 0 (223-204, 231-163). "The lanes played pretty much the same from
yesterday, when I changed the surface of my ball and got better carry. So I
didn't have to make too many adjustments today," said Pluhowsky, the 2002
World Cup champion.
Ryan-Ciach, who grabbed the final seed by just three pins from Singapore's
Valerie Teo Friday, devastated No. 1 seed Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia, 2
games to 0 (201-197, 235-225). Zulkifli has never won a head-to-head match
in seven World Cup tries.
"The match was as tough as I thought it would be," Ryan-Ciach said. "Shalin
never gave up and gave it everything she had; she just didn't get the pin
carry."
A spectator tried to console Zulkifli after the match, telling her she did
her best, to which Zulkifli responded, "My best just isn't good enough."
Ryan-Ciach will take on Leon in the second women's semifinal match Sunday
morning, with Pluhowsky and Del Rosario locking horns in the opener at 9
a.m. at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber.
The men's quarterfinals begin Saturday afternoon and feature top-seeded
Jason Belmonte of Australia against No. 8 Finland's Kai Virtanen in the
final match of the night. Singapore's Remy Ong, the No. 6 seed, challenges
third-seeded Jack Guay of Canada at 3 p.m. Other matches include No. 2 seed
Petter Hansen of Germany versus No. 7 seed Yves Van Eyken of Belgium, and
No. 4 Chester King of the Philippines versus Israel's Yahav Rabin, the No. 3
seed.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Quarterfinal results, Women:
No. 5 Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, def. No. 4 Ann-Maree Putney, Australia, 2
games to 1 (189-279, 238-160, 205-200)
No. 3 Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, def. No. 6 Helen Johnsson, Sweden, 2
games to 0 (278-232, 203-189)
No. 2 Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, def. No. 7 Laura Rhoney, Scotland, 2 games to
0 (223-204, 231-163)
No. 8 Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, def.
No. 1 Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 20
games to 0 (223-204, 231-163)
ZULKIFLI,
BELMONTE SNARE TOP SEEDS AT AMF WORLD CUP; TWO MORE 300s ROLLED
SINGAPORE - Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia and Jason Belmonte of Australia continue
to dominate the action at the 40th AMF Bowling World Cup Friday, capturing the
top seeds as the tournament moves into the quarterfinal round. Zulkifli rolled a
near-perfect 290 game to finish the qualifying phase with 7,492 pins for 32
games. Hoping to become the first Malaysian bowler ever to win a World Cup
title, the 26-year-old righthander averaged 234.13, more than 10 pins better
than Shannon Pluhowsky of the USA. Pluhowsky, who won
the World Cup in 2002, averaged 223.69 for 32 games with 7,158 pins and goes
into the quarterfinals as the second seed.
With the tournament format changing to a best-of-three games knockout format,
and all previous pin totals dropped, Zulkifli is hoping déjà vu doesn't strike
again. "I don't want to think beyond the first match tomorrow," said Zulkifli,
who was booted from the quarterfinals her past three tries. "I just want to win
that first one! My strategy is to bowl to achieve my season average, which is
215, and hope for the best." Zulkifli takes on defending champion Kerrie
Ryan-Ciach of Canada in the quarterfinal round. Ryan-Ciach also relied on a 290
game to snatch the eighth and final quarterfinal spot away from Singapore's
Valerie Teo by three pins.
Preceding match-ups pit No. 4 seed Ann-Maree Putney of Australia against No. 5
seed Yoselin Leon of Puerto Rico; No. 3 seed Liza Del Rosario of the Philippines
versus No. 6 Helen Johnsson of Sweden; and No. 2 Pluhowsky against No. 7 Laura
Rhoney of Scotland. The women's quarterfinals begin with the Putney - Leon match
at 8 a.m. Saturday at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber.
The Zulkifli - Ryan-Ciach match is scheduled to start at 11 a.m.
Belmonte experienced a slight letdown in Friday's action, with his overall
tournament average dropping six pins to 238.72. His 7,639 total was still good
enough, however, to slide past Norway's Petter Hansen by 60 pins. Belmonte will
face another World Cup rookie, Kai Virtanen of Finland, in the men's
quarterfinals Saturday. "I really can't wait to get out on the lanes tomorrow,
I'm looking forward
to this," said Belmonte, who is trying to become the first man from Australia to
win. "I'm kind of hoping that all the others in the top 8 will fall down,
they're all so tough; but that is not likely to happen, so I'll have to give it
my best shot."
Singapore's Remy Ong held on to sixth place and will meet Canada's Jack Guay in
Saturday's quarterfinals. Ong admitted that it wasn't his best day on the lanes.
"It's all about making moves on each shot. For instance, I had one game where I
made two tough spares-the 2-4-6-10 and 2-4-7-10-and shot 180-something. I just
had to move on to the next pair and not think about it anymore. I'm happy to
make it to the finals."
Others advancing include No. 7 seed Yves Van Eyken, who takes on No. 2 seed
Hansen, and No. 4 seed Chester King of the Philippines, who meets No. 5 seed
Yahav Rabin of Israel. Rabin joined the "World Cup 300 Club" Friday as did
Switzerland's Mathieu Berges, raising the number of perfect games recorded at
this year's World Cup to seven. Berges, however, missed the cut by 28
pins despite the perfect score. "I'm really disappointed, I wanted so much to
make the TV finals," Berges said. "I knew I had a shot after the 300 game, and I
knew I had to bowl well, but I threw a terrible ball in the 9th frame of my last
game and that was that. It was over." The men's quarterfinals begin Saturday at
2 p.m. with the King - Rabin match.
Quarterfinal winners advance to Sunday's semifinal round, which begins at 9 a.m.
at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber. The 2004 AMF World Cup champions will be crowned
Sunday afternoon at the center. The women's championship match is scheduled to
begin at 3 p.m., followed by the men.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Standings after 32 games, Women (top 8 advance, all pin totals dropped) - 1,
Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 7492 pins, 234.13 average. 2, Shannon Pluhowsky, USA,
7158, 223.69. 3, Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, 7078, 221.19. 4, Ann-Maree
Putney, Australia, 7047, 220.22. 5, Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, 6971, 217.84. 6,
Helen Johnsson, Sweden, 6936, 216.75. 7, Laura Rhoney, Scotland, 6861, 214.41.
8, Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 6802, 212.56.
DID NOT ADVANCE - 9, Valerie Teo, Singapore, 6799, 212.47. 10, Marie Ramirez
Solera, Costa Rica, 6785, 212.03. 11, Fiona de Koning, Netherlands, 6780,
211.88. 12, Beatrix Pesek, Hungary, 6767, 211.47. 13, Iliana Lomelí, Mexico,
6731, 210.34. 14, Laurence Fievet, France, 6705, 209.53. 15, Hiroko Shimizu,
Japan, 6690, 209.06. 16, Mariela Alarza, Venezuela, 6637, 207.41. 17, Bigi
Manico, Switzerland, 6591, 205.97. 18, Martina Beckel, Germany, 6586, 205.81.
19, Valerie Soto Andrino, Guatemala, 6466, 202.06. 20, Annette Biltoft, Denmark,
6449, 201.53. 21, Angelina Karto, Indonesia, 6445, 201.41. 22, Donna Adams,
England, 6442, 201.31. 23, Ivonne (Altmuller) Gross, Austria, 6396, 199.88. 24,
Kathleen Lyons, Ireland, 6331, 197.84.
Standings after 32 games - Men (top 8 advance, all pin totals dropped): 1, Jason
Belmonte, Australia, 7639 pins, 238.72 average. 2, Petter Hansen, Norway, 7579,
236.84. 3, Jack Guay, Canada, 7417, 231.78. 4, Chester King, Philippines, 7379,
230.59. 5, Yahav Rabin, Israel, 7304, 228.25. 6, Remy Ong, Singapore, 7264,
227.00. 7, Yves Van Eyken, Belgium, 7249, 226.53. 8, Kai Virtanen, Finland,
7246, 226.44.
DID NOT ADVANCE - 9, Mohammed Khalifa Al Qubaisi, UAE, 7222, 225.69. 10, Mathieu
Berges, Switzerland, 7218, 225.56. 11, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 7202.000001,
225.06. 12, Richard Fairley Jr, USA, 7171, 224.09. 12, Shoji Kawada, Japan,
7171, 224.09. 14, Guy Caminsky, South Africa, 7157, 223.66. 15, Alan Gibbons,
Ireland, 7142, 223.19. 16, Ahmed Shaheen, Qatar, 7112, 222.25. 17, Marcel van
den Bosch, Netherlands, 7095, 221.72. 18, Kayrat Baybolatov, Kazakhstan, 7088,
221.50. 18, Alejandro Reyna, Costa Rica, 7088, 221.50. 20, Siriphon Mayura,
Thailand, 7083, 221.34. 21, Arturo Hernandez, Venezuela, 7066, 220.81. 22,
Domenico Righi, San Marino, 6944, 217.00. 23, Maurizio Celli, Italy, 6942,
216.94. 24, Daniel Lim, Malaysia, 6925, 216.41.
ZULKIFLI AND
BELMONTE PACE AMF WORLD CUP; THREE MORE PERFECT GAMES ROLLED
SINGAPORE - Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia and Jason Belmonte of Australia
remain
atop the leader boards after 24 games at the 40th AMF Bowling World
Cup in
Singapore.
Zulkifli, whose
best World Cup finish to date has been second place, scored
a 1,292
set Thursday morning at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber to bring her
tournament average to 231.17 and total pinfall to 5,548. Her nearest
competitor, 2002 World Cup champion Shannon Pluhowsky, is 192 pins behind,
at
5,356. Pluhowsky is averaging 223.17.
"All of
us in the top three were all 'under average' this morning," Zulkifli
joked.
"We made good shots, but pin carry wasn't there."
Belmonte posted another 1,500+ series Thursday to increase his lead over
Norway's
Petter Hansen to 106 pins, despite Hansen's 300 game late in the
set.
Belmonte now has a 245.25 average with 5,886 pins.
"I
really wanted to finish the first 24 games on top of the field," Belmonte
said.
"It was a drive for me, a mental thing. Now I can say to myself, 'I
beat
these guys for 24 games, I can beat them for eight more.'"
Hansen
has 5,780 pins and a 240.83 average. He's trailed by Chester King of
the
Philippines, who also shot a perfect game Thursday night. Both 300 games
came on
lanes 3 and 4.
The field was cut to the top 24 men and women following Thursday's action.
Making
the cut along with Zulkifli and Pluhowsky in the women's division
were
Yoselin Leon of Puerto Rico, defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of
Canada,
1992 women's champion Martina Beckel of Germany, and hometown
favorite
Valerie Teo. Those advancing for the men included Canada's Jack
Guay,
Singapore's Remy Ong, 1988 men's champion Mohammed Khalifa Al-Qubaisi
of the
UAE, and the 1999 champion, Ahmed Shaheen of Qatar.
Leon
holds fifth position with 5,207 pins and a 216.96 average. Ryan-Ciach
is 12th
with 5,015 total pins and a 208.96 average, while Beckel is 18th
with
4,935 pins and an average of 205.63.
Teo stayed in sixth place with a set of 1,315 pins Thursday. Her 24-game
pinfall
is 5,157, and she is averaging 214.88. She agreed that the shot was
more
difficult to lock in on Thursday. "I thought pin carry was harder
today.
There were lots of 10-pins and 7-pins standing after first balls. But
I feel I
am just where I want to be at this stage"
Guay, who rolled the first perfect game in World Cup history in 1994, is in
fourth
place with 5,559 pins and a 231.63 average. Ong settled into fifth
place
with 5,537 pins and a 230.71 average.
"I'm
happy with the support I'm receiving here at the center," said Ong. "I
think I did much, much better today, even though the lanes were faster and
the
carry was tougher."
Al-Qubaisi used a high game of 279 to push his 24-game total to 5,447. He
is
averaging 226.96. Shaheen began the day out of the cut in 25th place but
crawled
into the top 24 with a 1,350 series to finish 21st with 5,273 pins
and a
219.71 average.
Belgium's Wendy Bergen tossed her first career 300 on the women's morning
squad.
Bergen, a 27-year-old secretary, is the fifth woman ever to card a
perfect
game at the World Cup.
Two other perfect games have been rolled in the tournament to date, by Pawel
Bielski
of Poland and Andrejus Puskariovas of Lithuania. Only Hansen and
King,
however, advanced to Friday's action.
The top 24 men and women bowl eight more games Friday. The field is then cut
to the
top eight in each division, who advance to the best-of-three-games
matchplay quarterfinals on Saturday. All pinfall is dropped after Friday's
cut to
the top 8. The 2004 AMF World Cup champions will be crowned Sunday
afternoon at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber. The women's championship match is
scheduled to begin at 3 p.m., followed by the men.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Standings after 24 games, Women (top 24 advance) - 1, Shalin Zulkifli,
Malaysia, 5548 pins, 231.17 average. 2, Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, 5356,
223.17. 3, Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, 5318, 221.58. 4, Ann-Maree Putney,
Australia, 5293, 220.54. 5, Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, 5207, 216.96. 6,
Valerie Teo, Singapore, 5157, 214.88. 7, Fiona de Koning, Netherlands, 5128,
213.67. 8, Helen Johnsson, Sweden, 5125, 213.54. 9, Hiroko Shimizu, Japan,
5101, 212.54. 10, Marie Ramirez Solera, Costa Rica, 5074, 211.42. 11,
Laurence Fievet, France, 5058, 210.75. 12, Kerrie Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 5015,
208.96. 13, Beatrix Pesek, Hungary, 5012, 208.83. 14, Bigi Manico,
Switzerland, 4979, 207.46. 15, Iliana Lomelí, Mexico, 4965, 206.88. 16,
Angelina Karto, Indonesia, 4953, 206.38. 17, Mariela Alarza, Venezuela,
4950, 206.25. 18, Martina Beckel, Germany, 4935, 205.63. 19, Laura Rhoney,
Scotland, 4923, 205.13.
20, Ivonne (Altmuller) Gross, Austria, 4857, 202.38.
21, Annette Biltoft, Denmark, 4840, 201.67. 22, Valerie Soto Andrino,
Guatemala, 4839, 201.63.
23, Donna
Adams, England, 4820, 200.83. 24,
Kathleen Lyons, Ireland, 4818, 200.75.
DID NOT ADVANCE - 25, Supaporn Chuanprasertkit, Thailand, 4810, 200.42. 26,
Sue Thomas, Wales, 4795, 199.79. 27, Yo Hong Zhang, China, 4780, 199.17. 28,
Leena Pulliainen, Finland, 4752, 198.00.
28, Mor Aviram, Israel, 4752,
198.00. 30, Niki Schiza, Cyprus, 4746, 197.75. 31, Jenny Ho, Hong Kong,
4744, 197.67.
32, Irene Kragh
Eckell, Norway, 4734, 197.25. 33, Karen
Holder, Panama, 4726, 196.92. 34, Roberta Ferina, Italy, 4724, 196.83. 35,
Olga Tarasova, Ukraine, 4713, 196.38. 36, Cheok Ling Alexandra Foo, Macao,
4685, 195.21. 37, Huynh Ngoc Diem Thuy, Vietnam, 4662, 194.25. 38, Inna
Zavialova, Russia, 4649, 193.71. 39, Ivena Heald, New Zealand, 4609, 192.04.
40, Danuta Dudko, Poland, 4604, 191.83. 41, Annie Henriquez, Dominican
Republic, 4596, 191.50. 42, Samy-Anna Saba, Egypt, 4592, 191.33. 43, Aida
Granillo, El Salvador, 4570, 190.42. 44, Wendy Bergen, Belgium, 4542,
189.25. 45, Katrin Vastra, Estonia, 4532, 188.83. 46, Diliana Tzvetkova,
Bulgaria, 4528, 188.67. 47, Ina Kunts, Belarus, 4488, 187.00. 48, Ana Benko,
Argentina, 4470, 186.25. 49, Rahma Mubarak Al-Sharqi, UAE, 4468, 186.17. 49,
Sara del Olmo de la Fuente, Spain, 4468, 186.17. 51, Sandhya Adhikari,
Nepal, 4458, 185.75. 52, Sabeena Athica, India, 4405, 183.54. 53, Tracey
Aubert, Jersey, 4365, 181.88. 54, Anna Parasaki, Greece, 4337, 180.71. 55,
Veronika Solojenkina, Kazakhstan, 4319, 179.96. 56, Antonella Frisoni, San
Marino, 4298, 179.08. 57, Petra Cermáková, Czech Republic, 4286, 178.58. 58,
Dominique Merlo, Reunion, 4250, 177.08. 59, Roxanne Lotheringen, South
Africa, 4249, 177.04. 60, Yasmine Al-Awadhi, Bahrain, 4170, 173.75. 61,
Theresa Depka, Virgin Islands, 4162, 173.42. 62, Daiva Perminiene,
Lithuania, 4127, 171.96. 63, Oytun Kurtkaya, Turkey, 4074, 169.75. 64,
Daniele Honigstein, Morocco, 4032, 168.00. 65, Karen Payne, Northern
Ireland, 4031, 167.96. 66, Nedia Louati, Tunisia, 3962, 165.08. 67, Mas
Suleiman, Brunei, 3930, 163.75. 68, Joanne Johnson, Guernsey, 3896, 162.33.
69, Irina Sapova, Uzbekistan, 3825, 159.38. 70, Maria Lucia Marco, Portugal,
3682, 153.42. 71, Helen McGunnigle, Gibraltar, 3514, 146.42. 72, Viv
Cornelius, Isle of Man, 3466, 144.42. 73, Herodawit Zeleke, Ethiopia, 3177,
132.38.
Standings after 24 games - Men (top 24 advance): 1, Jason Belmonte,
Australia, 5886, 245.25. 2, Petter Hansen, Norway, 5780, 240.83. 3, Chester
King, Philippines, 5561, 231.71. 4, Jack Guay, Canada, 5559, 231.63. 5, Remy
Ong, Singapore, 5537, 230.71.
6, Kai Virtanen, Finland, 5509, 229.54. 7,
Yahav Rabin, Israel, 5504, 229.33. 8, Marcel van den Bosch, Netherlands,
5481, 228.38.
9, Shoji
Kawada, Japan, 5460, 227.50. 10, Mohammed Khalifa Al
Qubaisi, UAE, 5447, 226.96. 11, Domenico Righi, San Marino, 5393, 224.71.
12, Guy Caminsky, South Africa, 5391, 224.63. 13, Yves Van Eyken, Belgium,
5383, 224.29. 14, Siriphon Mayura, Thailand, 5352, 223.00. 14, Richard
Fairley Jr, USA, 5352, 223.00. 16, Alan Gibbons, Ireland, 5344, 222.67. 17,
Alejandro Reyna, Costa Rica, 5332, 222.17. 18, Kayrat Baybolatov,
Kazakhstan, 5327, 221.96. 19, Arturo Hernandez, Venezuela, 5306, 221.08. 20,
Mathieu Berges, Switzerland, 5302, 220.92. 21, Ahmed Shaheen, Qatar, 5273,
219.71. 22, Maurizio Celli, Italy, 5269, 219.54. 23, Martin Larsen, Sweden,
5264.000001, 219.33. 24, Daniel Lim, Malaysia, 5264, 219.33.
DID NOT ADVANCE - 25, Magnus Magnusson, Iceland, 5256, 219.00. 26, Paul
Moor, England, 5245, 218.54. 27, Jesper Agerbo, Denmark, 5236, 218.17. 28,
Marco Jonsson, Scotland, 5181, 215.88. 29, Victor Richards Jr, Dominican
Republic, 5179, 215.79. 30, Nickolay Ovchinnikovs, Latvia, 5151, 214.63. 31,
Miguel Alberto Aguilar, Guatemala, 5147, 214.46. 32, Fadhel Mehdi Al
Mousawi, Kuwait, 5139, 214.13. 33, Tarek Helmy, Egypt, 5072, 211.33. 34,
David Davies, New Zealand, 5070, 211.25. 35, Tamas Holczer, Hungary, 5040,
210.00. 36, Peter Knopp, Germany, 5014, 208.92. 37, Udo Sulp, Estonia, 4990,
207.92. 38, Andrejus Puskariovas, Lithuania, 4988, 207.83. 39, Peter Gangl,
Austria, 4977, 207.38. 40, Pawel Bielski, Poland, 4964, 206.83. 41, Bambang
Sutomo, Indonesia, 4962, 206.75. 42, Peng Sheng Cheng, Macau, 4933, 205.54.
43, Kostas Sakellariou, Greece, 4914, 204.75. 44, Daniel Velasco, Mexico,
4909, 204.54. 45, Rogerio Mattos, Brazil, 4894, 203.92. 46, Andrey Mizin,
Russia, 4876, 203.17. 47, Jirí Uhlír, Czech Republic, 4862, 202.58. 48, Yi
Liu Shao, China, 4855, 202.29. 49, Ruben Favero, Argentina, 4846, 201.92.
50, Mohammed Al Masri, Jordan, 4825, 201.04. 51, Erwin Pascual Potot, Spain,
4823, 200.96. 52, Reynaldo Zialcita, Guam, 4813, 200.54. 53, Aziz Jaffar,
Bahrain, 4803, 200.13. 54, Kevin Horton, Northern Ireland, 4773, 198.88. 55,
Hui Chi Nam, Hong Kong, 4768, 198.67. 56, Harsh Vardhan Sarda, India, 4760,
198.33. 57, Ron Chamberlain, Wales, 4759, 198.29. 58, Jose Avendaño, Panama,
4756, 198.17. 59, Heorhi Pryhozhy, Belarus, 4737, 197.38. 60, Charles
Isaacs, Bahamas, 4725, 196.88. 61, Maurice Talane, French Guyane, 4707,
196.13. 62, Graham Coles, Gibraltar, 4658, 194.08. 63, Uros Kus, Slovenia,
4650, 193.75. 64, Francisco Zelaya, El Salvador, 4640, 193.33. 65, Ak Aizat
Bin Pg Abu Samah, Brunei, 4636, 201.57. 66, Ly Liet, Vietnam, 4612, 192.17.
67, Alexander Lefterov, Bulgaria, 4607, 191.96. 68, Demis Ioannides, Cyprus,
4590, 191.25. 69, Bernard Vandermeersch, France, 4548, 189.50. 70, Burak
Natal, Turkey, 4526, 188.58. 71, Kumar Tamang, Nepal, 4518, 188.25. 72,
Marin Tranier, Vanuatu, 4506, 187.75. 73, Ludovic Agier, Martinique, 4499,
187.46. 74, Patrick Mehdi Leroy, Morocco, 4470, 186.25. 75, John Koon,
Mauritius, 4451, 185.46. 76, Vitaliy Shylan, Ukraine, 4435, 184.79. 77,
Julio Sosa, Uruguay, 4403, 183.46. 78, Erle Cornelius, Isle of Man, 4337,
180.71. 79, Patrice Esparon, Reunion, 4332, 180.50. 80, Michael Richard
Prigent, Guernsey, 4329, 180.38. 81, Atiq Sikander, Afghanistan, 4309,
179.54. 82, Shakasimov Shoabbos, Uzbekistan, 4264, 177.67. 83, Bogdan-Adrian
Obada, Romania, 4236, 176.50. 84, Piotr Slav, Moldova, 4231, 176.29. 85,
Helder Gomes Santos, Portugal, 4172, 173.83. 86, Abdugafurov Olimjon,
Tajikistan, 4168, 173.67. 87, Arif Mohamed-Hedi, Tunisia, 4132, 172.17. 88,
Alemayehu Mekonnen, Ethiopia, 4053, 168.88. 89, Rufat Farzaliyev,
Azerbaijan, 3976, 165.67. 90, Bashar Kalaji, Syria, 3925, 163.54. 91, Ashot
Grigoryan, Armenia, 3888, 162.00. 92, Shant Panos Tomassian, Iraq, 3871,
161.29. 93, Paul Gay,
Jersey, 3301, 183.39.
ZULKIFLI AND
BELMONTE RETAIN LEADS AT 40TH AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP
SINGAPORE - Malaysia's Shalin Zulkifli holds a 199-pin lead over her closest
rival, while Australia's Jason Belmonte maintains a 46-pin lead in the men's
division after 18 games at the 40th AMF Bowling World Cup in Singapore.
Zulkifli, 26, rolled a six-game set of 1,438 Wednesday at SuperBowl SAFRA
Mount Faber to boost her total pinfall to 4,256 and her tournament average
to 236.44. A mainstay of the Malaysian national team for more than a decade,
the 26-year-old righthander is trying to become the first person from her
country to win the coveted World Cup title. She's also hoping to reverse the
fortunes that have dealt her six consecutive World Cup defeats.
She likes her chances so far. "There is an area of the lanes where I feel
comfortable, and that is the area that is scoring well right now," she said.
"Overall, people aren't having too much trouble getting to the pocket, but
they are having trouble carrying the corner pins. It does seem that the
straighter up you can go, with good heavy roll on the ball, the better off
you are."
Second place belongs to 2002 World Cup champion Shannon Pluhowsky of the
United States. Her high game of 259 anchored a 1,415 series to give her
4,057 pins and a 225.39 average for 18 games. Monday's leader, Ann-Maree
Putney of Australia, dropped into third Wednesday with a 1,279 series. She
is 22 pins behind Pluhowsky.
Singapore's Valerie Teo continued her assault on the leaders by posting the
women's high set of the day, 1,442. Her 3,842-pin total places her sixth and
in good position to make the cut to the top 24 following Thursday's action.
Defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada is 13th with 3,762 pins and a
209.0 average.
Puerto Rico's Yoselin Leon fired a 290 game Wednesday, the high single for
the women thus far. She is in seventh with 3,827 pins and a 212.61 average.
Two perfect games have been rolled in the tournament to date, by Pawel
Bielski of Poland and Andrejus Puskariovas of Lithuania.
Belmonte fended off Norway's Petter Hansen for the pole position Wednesday.
Hansen posted the men's highest set for the day, 1,466, to raise his total
pinfall to 4,237 and his average to 240.39. Belmonte, a 21-year-old World
Youth Championships gold medalist, settled for a 1,446 series. He is
averaging 242.94 with 4,373 pins.
"Considering how well players like Petter and Remy Ong are playing right
now, I'm surprised to still be leading," Belmonte said. "It was a big day
for me. I started slow and fought back hard, same as yesterday. I was happy
I haven't plateaued, that I can still kick it in if I have to, especially
because the other guys are coming at me."
Canada's Jack Guay stayed in third with a 1,412 series, highlighted by a 279
game. "I really thought I was going to have another 300 game," said the only
player to roll two perfect games in AMF World Cup history. "But I didn't
bend my knee quite as much as I should have on the shot that missed, and I
lost the leverage and power to carry."
Singapore's Remy Ong is close behind in fourth place, 42 pins behind Guay.
Ong is averaging 232.67 with 4,188 pins.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Standings after 18 games, Women - 1, Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 4256 pins,
236.44 average. 2, Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, 4057, 225.39. 3, Ann-Maree
Putney, Australia, 4035, 224.17. 4, Liza Del Rosario, Philippines, 3956,
219.78. 5, Helen Johnsson, Sweden, 3867, 214.83. 6, Valerie Teo, Singapore,
3842, 213.44. 7, Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, 3827, 212.61. 8, Hiroko Shimizu,
Japan, 3806, 211.44. 8, Beatrix Pesek, Hungary, 3806, 211.44. 10, Fiona de
Koning, Netherlands, 3793, 210.72. 11, Bigi Manico, Switzerland, 3788,
210.44. 12, Marie Ramirez Solera, Costa Rica, 3783, 210.17. 13, Kerrie
Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 3762, 209.00. 14, Laura Rhoney, Scotland, 3753, 208.50.
15, Iliana Lomelí, Mexico, 3745, 208.06. 16, Laurence Fievet, France, 3740,
207.78. 17, Annette Biltoft, Denmark, 3725, 206.94. 17, Angelina Karto,
Indonesia, 3725, 206.94. 19, Martina Beckel, Germany, 3722, 206.78. 20,
Ivonne (Altmuller) Gross, Austria, 3703, 205.72. 21, Mariela Alarza,
Venezuela, 3687, 204.83. 22, Kathleen Lyons, Ireland, 3663, 203.50. 23, Yo
Hong Zhang, China, 3651, 202.83. 24, Valerie Soto Andrino, Guatemala, 3637,
202.06.
25, Donna Adams, England, 3624, 201.33. 26, Roberta Ferina, Italy, 3608,
200.44. 27, Supaporn Chuanprasertkit, Thailand, 3592, 199.56. 28, Sue
Thomas, Wales, 3583, 199.06. 29, Irene Kragh Eckell, Norway, 3580, 198.89.
30, Leena Pulliainen, Finland, 3552, 197.33. 31, Mor Aviram, Israel, 3534,
196.33. 32, Niki Schiza, Cyprus, 3531, 196.17. 33, Jenny Ho, Hong Kong,
3518, 195.44. 34, Olga Tarasova, Ukraine, 3515, 195.28. 35, Karen Holder,
Panama, 3480, 193.33. 36, Ivena Heald, New Zealand, 3479, 193.28. 37, Inna
Zavialova, Russia, 3469, 192.72. 38, Samy-Anna Saba, Egypt, 3460, 192.22.
39, Annie Henriquez, Dominican Republic, 3455, 191.94. 40, Huynh Ngoc Diem
Thuy, Vietnam, 3449, 191.61. 41, Diliana Tzvetkova, Bulgaria, 3435, 190.83.
42, Aida Granillo, El Salvador, 3429, 190.50. 43, Cheok Ling Alexandra Foo,
Macao, 3419, 189.94. 44, Danuta Dudko, Poland, 3417, 189.83. 45, Sara del
Olmo de la Fuente, Spain, 3378, 187.67.
46, Ana Benko, Argentina, 3339,
185.50. 47, Katrin Vastra, Estonia, 3332, 185.11. 48, Ina Kunts, Belarus,
3326, 184.78. 49, Veronika Solojenkina, Kazakhstan, 3316, 184.22.
49, Rahma
Mubarak Al-Sharqi, UAE, 3316, 184.22. 51, Petra Cermáková, Czech Republic,
3295, 183.06. 52, Tracey Aubert, Jersey, 3279, 182.17. 53, Anna Parasaki,
Greece, 3272, 181.78. 54, Sabeena Athica, India, 3232, 179.56. 55, Sandhya
Adhikari, Nepal, 3226, 179.22. 56, Roxanne Lotheringen, South Africa, 3224,
179.11. 57, Wendy Bergen, Belgium, 3219, 178.83. 58, Antonella Frisoni, San
Marino, 3210, 178.33. 59, Daiva Perminiene, Lithuania, 3150, 175.00. 60,
Dominique Merlo, Reunion, 3142, 174.56. 61, Yasmine Al-Awadhi, Bahrain,
3122, 173.44. 62, Oytun Kurtkaya, Turkey, 3060, 170.00. 63, Theresa Depka,
Virgin Islands, 3048, 169.33. 64, Karen Payne, Northern Ireland, 3027,
168.17. 65, Daniele Honigstein, Morocco, 2997, 166.50. 66, Nedia Louati,
Tunisia, 2958, 164.33. 67, Joanne Johnson, Guernsey, 2931, 162.83. 68, Mas
Suleiman, Brunei, 2914, 161.89. 69, Irina Sapova, Uzbekistan, 2827, 157.06.
70, Maria Lucia Marco, Portugal, 2811, 156.17. 71, Viv Cornelius, Isle of
Man, 2644, 146.89. 72, Helen McGunnigle, Gibraltar, 2578, 143.22. 73,
Herodawit Zeleke, Ethiopia, 2383, 132.39.
Standings after 18 games - Men: 1, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 4373 pins,
242.94 average. 2, Petter Hansen, Norway, 4327, 240.39. 3, Jack Guay,
Canada, 4230, 235.00. 4, Remy Ong, Singapore, 4188, 232.67. 5, Chester King,
Philippines, 4156, 230.89. 6, Marcel van den Bosch, Netherlands, 4153,
230.72. 7, Domenico Righi, San Marino, 4119, 228.83. 8, Shoji Kawada, Japan,
4108, 228.22. 9, Kai Virtanen, Finland, 4091, 227.28. 10, Mohammed Khalifa
Al Qubaisi, UAE, 4086, 227.00. 11, Siriphon Mayura, Thailand, 4054, 225.22.
12, Yahav Rabin, Israel, 4031, 223.94. 13, Kayrat Baybolatov, Kazakhstan,
4026, 223.67. 14, Yves Van Eyken, Belgium, 4024, 223.56. 15, Paul Moor,
England, 4004, 222.44. 16, Guy Caminsky, South Africa, 3998, 222.11. 17,
Alan Gibbons, Ireland, 3995, 221.94.
18, Jesper Agerbo, Denmark, 3991,
221.72. 19, Arturo Hernandez, Venezuela, 3988, 221.56. 20, Martin Larsen,
Sweden, 3973, 220.72. 21, Nickolay Ovchinnikovs, Latvia, 3972, 220.67. 22,
Mathieu Berges, Switzerland, 3969, 220.50. 23, Magnus Magnusson, Iceland,
3955, 219.72. 24, Alejandro Reyna, Costa Rica, 3935, 218.61.
25, Ahmed Shaheen, Qatar, 3923, 217.94. 26, Maurizio Celli, Italy, 3919,
217.72. 27, Richard Fairley Jr, USA, 3875, 215.28. 28, Victor Richards Jr,
Dominican Republic, 3866, 214.78. 29, Daniel Lim, Malaysia, 3850, 213.89.
30, Fadhel Mehdi Al Mousawi, Kuwait, 3847, 213.72. 31, Marco Jonsson,
Scotland, 3828, 212.67. 32, David Davies, New Zealand, 3813, 211.83. 33,
Tarek Helmy, Egypt, 3804, 211.33. 34, Pawel Bielski, Poland, 3803, 211.28.
35, Reynaldo Zialcita, Guam, 3754, 208.56. 35, Miguel Alberto Aguilar,
Guatemala, 3754, 208.56. 37, Erwin Pascual Potot, Spain, 3705, 205.83. 38,
Tamas Holczer, Hungary, 3704, 205.78. 39, Peter Knopp, Germany, 3696,
205.33. 40, Kostas Sakellariou, Greece, 3694, 205.22. 41, Bambang Sutomo,
Indonesia, 3688, 204.89. 42, Rogerio Mattos, Brazil, 3685, 204.72. 42, Udo
Sulp, Estonia, 3685, 204.72. 44, Peng Sheng Cheng, Macau, 3681, 204.50. 45,
Aziz Jaffar, Bahrain, 3655, 203.06. 45, Andrejus Puskariovas, Lithuania,
3655, 203.06. 47, Hui Chi Nam, Hong Kong, 3651, 202.83. 48, Peter Gangl,
Austria, 3645, 202.50. 48, Kevin Horton, Northern Ireland, 3645, 202.50. 50,
Mohammed Al Masri, Jordan, 3629, 201.61. 51, Ak Aizat Bin Pg Abu Samah,
Brunei, 3621, 201.17. 52, Jirí Uhlír, Czech Republic, 3620, 201.11. 53, Yi
Liu Shao, China, 3618, 201.00. 54, Harsh Vardhan Sarda, India, 3614, 200.78.
55, Daniel Velasco, Mexico, 3573, 198.50. 56, Uros Kus, Slovenia, 3565,
198.06. 57, Ruben Favero, Argentina, 3561, 197.83. 58, Jose Avendaño,
Panama, 3552, 197.33. 59, Andrey Mizin, Russia, 3533, 196.28. 60, Ron
Chamberlain, Wales, 3520, 195.56. 61, Francisco Zelaya, El Salvador, 3518,
195.44. 62, Heorhi Pryhozhy, Belarus, 3513, 195.17. 63, Alexander Lefterov,
Bulgaria, 3507, 194.83. 64, Charles Isaacs, Bahamas, 3497, 194.28. 65, Ly
Liet, Vietnam, 3496, 194.22. 66, Maurice Talane, French Guyane, 3491,
193.94. 67, Graham Coles, Gibraltar, 3454, 191.89. 68, Ludovic Agier,
Martinique, 3449, 191.61. 69, Demis Ioannides, Cyprus, 3423, 190.17. 70,
Marin Tranier, Vanuatu, 3397, 188.72. 71, Burak Natal, Turkey, 3388, 188.22.
72, Vitaliy Shylan, Ukraine, 3383, 187.94. 73, Bernard Vandermeersch,
France, 3365, 186.94. 73, Julio Sosa, Uruguay, 3365, 186.94. 75, Kumar
Tamang, Nepal, 3345, 185.83. 76, Patrick Mehdi Leroy, Morocco, 3343, 185.72.
77, John Koon, Mauritius, 3303, 183.50. 78, Paul Gay, Jersey, 3301, 183.39.
79, Atiq Sikander, Afghanistan, 3273, 181.83. 80, Michael Richard Prigent,
Guernsey, 3265, 181.39. 81, Patrice Esparon, Reunion, 3222, 179.00. 82,
Bogdan-Adrian Obada, Romania, 3185, 176.94. 83, Erle Cornelius, Isle of Man,
3174, 176.33. 84, Shakasimov Shoabbos, Uzbekistan, 3166, 175.89. 85, Piotr
Slav, Moldova, 3147, 174.83. 86, Helder Gomes Santos, Portugal, 3123,
173.50. 87, Abdugafurov Olimjon, Tajikistan, 3102, 172.33. 88, Arif
Mohamed-Hedi, Tunisia, 3065, 170.28. 89, Alemayehu Mekonnen, Ethiopia, 3023,
167.94. 90, Ashot Grigoryan, Armenia, 3003, 166.83. 91, Rufat Farzaliyev,
Azerbaijan, 2960, 164.44. 92, Shant Panos Tomassian, Iraq, 2954, 164.11. 93,
Bashar Kalaji, Syria, 2946, 163.67.
BELMONTE
MAINTAINS LEAD AT 40TH AMF WORLD CUP; LITHUANIAN ROLLS 300 GAME
SINGAPORE - For the second consecutive day, a solid performance by Australia
's Jason Belmonte at the 40th AMF Bowling World Cup was overshadowed by the
excitement of a perfect game.
Andrejus Puskariovas, a 38-year-old businessman from Lithuania, rolled the
tournament's second 300 game during the men's afternoon squad. It was
Puskariovas' second career perfect game and followed the 300 posted Monday
afternoon at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber bowling center by Poland's Pawel
Bielski. It is the 21st 300 game in AMF World Cup history.
Puskariovas almost missed making history by getting up on the wrong approach
for his final pitch. His coach caught him in time and steered him to the
correct lane. Despite the close call, Puskariovas said he wasn't that
nervous about getting the 300 game.
"I've had nine or 10 strikes in a row several times, and I rolled my first
300 game three months ago," he said. "Actually, when I got up in the 10th
frame, I really thought that, after all this, I would probably leave one pin
and get a 299 score."
Belmonte cooled down from his torrid 250.67 average on Monday. His 1,423
series Tuesday kept him ahead of Norway's Petter Hansen by 66 pins. Belmonte
is averaging 243.91 after 12 games.
"I think I can win, sure, but I think everyone here feels the same way," he
said. "This bowling center is state-of-the-art, the conditions are nice, the
pins are in perfect shape, and everything is top-notch.
"On the other hand, it makes it harder to win, too, because even more
players can strike when conditions are like this."
Canada's Jack Guay, the first person ever to roll a perfect game at the AMF
World Cup (1994, Mexico), used a 274 game to move into third place Tuesday.
He has 2,818 pins and a 234.83 average. Singapore's Remy Ong sits behind
Guay in fourth, with 2,759 pins and a 229.92 average.
"I caught up a lot [with the leaders] today," Ong said. "I think we may see
a new leader each day, and I hope that tomorrow I will be that person."
Ann-Maree Putney of Australia leads Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia as the women
begin their second six games of qualifying. Putney's 1,386 series gives her
an average of 231.0 and a 45-pin lead over Zulkifli, who is trying to win
her first World Cup in seven attempts.
Defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada is third with 1,130 pins and
a 218.33 average. Singapore's Valerie Ong sits in 27th place with 1,183 pins
and a 197.17 average.
40th AMF World Cup, December 5-12, SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber, Singapore
Standings after 12 games - Men: 1, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 2927 pins,
243.92 average. 2, Petter Hansen, Norway, 2861, 238.42. 3, Jack Guay,
Canada, 2818, 234.83. 4, Remy Ong, Singapore, 2759, 229.92. 5, Mohammed
Khalifa Al Qubaisi, UAE, 2741, 228.42. 6 (tie) Maurizio Celli, Italy, and
Chester King, Philippines, 2738, 228.17. 8, Marcel van den Bosch,
Netherlands, 2733, 227.75. 9, Yahav Rabin, Israel, 2728, 227.33. 10, Kayrat
Baybolatov, Kazakhstan, 2724, 227.00. 11, Kai Virtanen, Finland, 2714,
226.17. 12, Domenico Righi, San Marino, 2705, 225.42. 13, Magnus Magnusson,
Iceland, 2703, 225.25. 14, Siriphon Mayura, Thailand, 2691, 224.25. 15,
Pawel Bielski, Poland, 2688, 224.00. 16, Reynaldo Zialcita, Guam, 2674,
222.83. 17, Alejandro Reyna, Costa Rica, 2672, 222.67. 18, Nickolay
Ovchinnikovs, Latvia, 2668, 222.33. 19, Alan Gibbons, Ireland, 2667, 222.25.
20, Yves Van Eyken, Belgium, 2666, 222.17. 21 (tie) Marco Jonsson, Scotland,
and Paul Moor, England, 2658, 221.50. 23, Mathieu Berges, Switzerland, 2652,
221.00. 24, Shoji Kawada, Japan, 2644, 220.33.
25, Arturo Hernandez, Venezuela, 2622, 218.50. 26, Jesper Agerbo, Denmark,
2618, 218.17. 27, Ahmed Shaheen, Qatar, 2615, 217.92. 28, Guy Caminsky,
South Africa, 2611, 217.58. 29, Peter Knopp, Germany, 2581, 215.08. 30,
Fadhel Mehdi Al Mousawi, Kuwait, 2580, 215.00. 31, Martin Larsen, Sweden,
2572, 214.33. 32, Richard Fairley Jr, USA, 2563, 213.58. 33, Miguel Alberto
Aguilar, Guatemala, 2554, 212.83. 34, Daniel Lim, Malaysia, 2548, 212.33.
35, Andrejus Puskariovas, Lithuania, 2541, 211.75. 36, Rogerio Mattos,
Brazil, 2521, 210.08. 37, Udo Sulp, Estonia, 2516, 209.67. 38, Victor
Richards Jr, Dominican Republic, 2514, 209.50. 39, Kostas Sakellariou,
Greece, 2497, 208.08. 40, Tarek Helmy, Egypt, 2484, 207.00. 41, Tamas
Holczer, Hungary, 2480, 206.67. 42, David Davies, New Zealand, 2470, 205.83.
43, Daniel Velasco, Mexico, 2462, 205.17. 44, Kevin Horton, Northern
Ireland, 2436, 203.00. 45, Harsh Vardhan Sarda, India, 2435, 202.92. 46,
Bambang Sutomo, Indonesia, 2432, 202.67. 47, Peter Gangl, Austria, 2426,
202.17. 48, Hui Chi Nam, Hong Kong, 2423, 201.92. 49, Francisco Zelaya, El
Salvador, 2420, 201.67. 50, Aziz Jaffar, Bahrain, 2403, 200.25. 51, Yi Liu
Shao, China, 2402, 200.17. 52, Jose Avendaño, Panama, 2400, 200.00. 53, Jirí
Uhlír, Czech Republic, 2390, 199.17. 54, Andrey Mizin, Russia, 2388, 199.00.
55, Mohammed Masri, Jordan, 2382, 198.50. 56, Ludovic Agier, Martinique,
2375, 197.92. 57, Erwin Pascual Potot, Spain, 2367, 197.25. 58, Burak Natal,
Turkey, 2363, 196.92. 59, Peng Sheng Cheng, Macau, 2358, 196.50. 60, Charles
Isaacs, Bahamas, 2356, 196.33.
61, Ak Aizat Bin Pg Abu Samah, Brunei, 2355,
196.25. 62, Paul Gay, Jersey, 2340, 195.00. 63, Marin Tranier, Vanuatu,
2338, 194.83. 64, Bernard Vandermeersch, France, 2336, 194.67.
65, Graham
Coles, Gibraltar, 2330, 194.17. 66, Uros Kus, Slovenia, 2305, 192.08. 67,
Patrick Mehdi Leroy, Morocco, 2299, 191.58. 68, Ron Chamberlain, Wales,
2296, 191.33. 68, Julio Sosa, Uruguay, 2296, 191.33. 70, Heorhi Pryhozhy,
Belarus, 2293, 191.08. 71 (tie) Ruben Favero, Argentina, and Ly Liet,
Vietnam, 2269, 189.08. 73, Maurice Talane, French Guyane, 2247, 187.25. 73,
Kumar Tamang, Nepal, 2247, 187.25. 75, Demis Ioannides, Cyprus, 2233,
186.08. 76, Alexander Lefterov, Bulgaria, 2218, 184.83. 77, Vitaliy Shylan,
Ukraine, 2216, 184.67. 78, Michael Richard Prigent, Guernsey, 2207, 183.92.
79, John Koon, Mauritius, 2175, 181.25. 80, Patrice Esparon, Reunion, 2166,
180.50. 81, Bogdan-Adrian Obada, Romania, 2156, 179.67. 82, Atiq Sikander,
Afghanistan, 2119, 176.58. 83 (tie) Erle Cornelius, Isle of Man, and Helder
Gomes Santos, Portugal, 2105, 175.42. 85, Shakasimov Shoabbos, Uzbekistan,
2084, 173.67. 86, Piotr Slav, Moldova, 2075, 172.92. 87, Ashot Grigoryan,
Armenia, 2074, 172.83. 88, Abdugafurov Olimjon, Tajikistan, 2047, 170.58.
89, Alemayehu Mekonnen, Ethiopia, 2041, 170.08. 90, Arif Mohamed-Hedi,
Tunisia, 1991, 165.92. 91, Rufat Farzaliyev, Azerbaijan, 1974, 164.50. 92,
Shant Panos Tomassian, Iraq, 1931, 160.92. 93, Bashar Kalaji, Syria, 1880,
156.67.
Standings after 6 games, Women: 1, Ann-Maree Putney, Australia, 1386 pins,
231.00 average. 2, Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 1341, 223.50. 3, Kerrie
Ryan-Ciach, Canada, 1310, 218.33. 4, Hiroko Shimizu, Japan, 1302, 217.00. 5,
Angelina Karto, Indonesia, 1299, 216.50. 6, Martina Beckel, Germany, 1283,
213.83. 7, Laurence Fievet, France, 1270, 211.67. 8, Niki Schiza, Cyprus,
1268, 211.33. 9, Annette Biltoft, Denmark, 1267, 211.17. 10, Irene Kragh
Eckell, Norway, 1259, 209.83. 11 (tie) Yoselin Leon, Puerto Rico, and
Shannon Pluhowsky, USA, 1248, 208.00. 13, Marie Ramirez Solera, Costa Rica,
1246, 207.67. 14, Iliana Lomelí, Mexico, 1244, 207.33. 15, Helen Johnsson,
Sweden, 1238, 206.33. 16, Ivonne (Altmuller) Gross, Austria, 1235, 205.83.
17, Bigi Manico,
Switzerland, 1230, 205.00. 18, Liza Del Rosario,
Philippines, 1225, 204.17. 19, Diliana Tzvetkova, Bulgaria, 1223, 203.83.
20, Beatrix Pesek, Hungary, 1217, 202.83. 21, Kathleen Lyons, Ireland, 1214,
202.33. 22, Jenny Ho, Hong Kong, 1207, 201.17. 23, Fiona de Koning,
Netherlands, 1199, 199.83. 24, Yo Hong Zhang, China, 1196, 199.33.
25, Valerie Soto Andrino, Guatemala, 1190, 198.33. 26, Mariela Alarza,
Venezuela, 1186, 197.67. 27, Valerie Teo, Singapore, 1183, 197.17. 28, Aida
Granillo, El Salvador, 1177, 196.17. 29, Laura Rhoney, Scotland, 1175,
195.83. 30, Donna Adams, England, 1174, 195.67. 31, Annie Henriquez,
Dominican Republic, 1173, 195.50. 32, Ivena Heald, New Zealand, 1170,
195.00. 33, Veronika Solojenkina, Kazakhstan, 1162, 193.67. 34, Katrin
Vastra, Estonia, 1158, 193.00. 35, Karen Holder, Panama, 1155, 192.50. 36,
Supaporn Chuanprasertkit, Thailand, 1153, 192.17. 37, Roberta Ferina, Italy,
1146, 191.00. 38, Olga Tarasova, Ukraine, 1140, 190.00. 39 (tie) Inna
Zavialova, Russia, and Ana Benko, Argentina, 1136, 189.33. 41, Anna
Parasaki, Greece, 1129, 188.17. 42, Sue Thomas, Wales, 1120, 186.67. 43,
Samy-Anna Saba, Egypt, 1115, 185.83. 44, Mor Aviram, Israel, 1112, 185.33.
45, Roxanne Lotheringen, South Africa, 1105, 184.17. 46, Sara del Olmo de la
Fuente, Spain, 1102, 183.67. 47, Leena Pulliainen, Finland, 1101, 183.50.
48, Daiva Perminiene, Lithuania, 1076, 179.33. 49, Sabeena Athica, India,
1071, 178.50. 50, Tracey Aubert, Jersey, 1070, 178.33. 51, Huynh Ngoc Diem
Thuy, Vietnam, 1062, 177.00. 52, Rahma Mubarak Al-Sharqi, UAE, 1058, 176.33.
53, Cheok Ling Alexandra Foo, Macao, 1057, 176.17. 54, Stella Jalalova,
Azerbaijan, 1051, 175.17. 55, Dominique Merlo, Reunion, 1050, 175.00. 56,
Petra Cermáková, Czech Republic, 1018, 169.67. 57, Joanne Johnson, Guernsey,
1017, 169.50. 58, Sandhya Adhikari, Nepal, 1008, 168.00. 59, Irina Sapova,
Uzbekistan, 1000, 166.67. 60, Wendy Bergen, Belgium, 998, 166.33. 61 (tie)
Nedia Louati, Tunisia, and Oytun Kurtkaya, Turkey, 997, 166.17. 63, Yasmine
Al-Awadhi, Bahrain, 993, 165.50. 64, Theresa Depka, Virgin Islands, 984,
164.00. 65 (tie) Mas Suleiman, Brunei, and Antonella Frisoni, San Marino,
979, 163.17. 67, Daniele Honigstein, Morocco, 977, 162.83. 68, Helen
McGunnigle, Gibraltar, 973, 162.17. 69, Danuta Dudko, Poland, 969, 161.50.
70, Karen Payne, Northern Ireland, 963, 160.50. 71, Ina Kunts, Belarus, 956,
159.33. 72, Viv Cornelius, Isle of Man, 941, 156.83. 73, Maria Lucia Marco,
Portugal, 930, 155.00. 74, Herodawit Zeleke, Ethiopia, 772, 128.67.
REMY ONG, VALERIE
TEO TO REPRESENT SINGAPORE AT 2004 AMF WORLD CUP
1999 Champion Ahmed Shaheen of Qatar Qualifies; 96 Nations Confirm Participation
LONDON, ENGLAND, November 19, 2004 – National team bowlers Remy Ong and Valerie Teo will represent host nation Singapore next month at the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup. The World Cup will be held December 5-12 at the SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber facility in Singapore. Ong is making his third trip to the AMF World Cup, while Teo is going for the second time. Ong was runner-up to Finland’s Mika Luoto in 2002 when the World Cup was in held in Latvia, after finishing tied for fifth in Thailand in 2001. Teo also competed in Latvia, where she finished 27th. Both bowlers have scored important wins already this year. Ong won the Qatar Open and Guam Open in recent months, while Teo captured two gold medals in the Asian Youth Championships in February. Ong finished second in 2002 after winning three gold medals in the Asian Games in Pusan, Korea. Following those successes, however, he experienced a downturn that now appears to be over. “Perhaps I do well only in even-numbered years,” he jokingly told Straits Times reporter Alvin Foo. If that is the case, Ong has something in common with Paeng Nepomuceno of the Philippines. All four of Paeng’s World Cup crowns were won in Olympic years (1976, 1980, 1992 and 1996). Teo cut back on her competitive schedule after the Asian Youth Championships so she could pursue her studies. The former Sportsgirl of the Year hopes to become a physician when her athletic career is over.
In related news, Qatar announced that 1999 World Cup champion Ahmed Shaheen will represent that country for the eighth time. Shaheen has five Top 10 finishes in his previous outings, including his 1999 victory in Las Vegas, USA. Like Ong, Shaheen is coming off two big recent international victories, the Indonesian Open and the Thailand Open. Shaheen also owns one of the 19 perfect games rolled in the 40-year history of the AMF World Cup. His came in 1997, in Cairo, Egypt.
At press time, 96 nations had confirmed participation in the 2004 AMF World Cup and named their representatives, including newcomers Afghanistan, Libya, Nigeria, Slovakia and Tajikistan. That puts the 2004 edition on track to set a new mark for number of countries represented in any given year. The current record was set in 2000 in Lisbon, Portugal, when 88 countries sent bowlers.
LONDON, ENGLAND, October 31, 2004 – C.J. Suarez, the Filipino bowler who delighted his native country with a victory in the 2003 AMF Bowling World Cup, will not defend his title in Singapore this December. Suarez lost out in the Philippines’ national World Cup finals to national team member Chester King. King will make his AMF World Cup debut at Singapore’s SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber bowling center Dec. 5-12. King, who rolled a perfect 300 score in this year’s Indonesian Open, continues a family tradition by qualifying for the 2004 World Cup. His father, Cas King, represented the Philippines in 1973---coincidentally, the only other time the AMF World Cup has been held in Singapore.
Liza del Rosario won the Philippines’ women’s national finals and will make her second World Cup appearance. She was runner-up to Japan’s Nachimi Itakura in 2001 in Pattaya, Thailand. Del Rosario has been on a tear in recent Asian tournaments, winning the Singapore Open in September and the Indonesian Open Masters title earlier this month. She is the defending Asian Bowling Federation Tour Grand Slam women’s champion.
Malaysia has also announced that it will be sending Shalin Zulkifli and Daniel Lim as its representatives. This will be Zulkifli’s seventh appearance in the AMF World Cup; she has never finished lower than tied for fifth place. Her best showing came in 1996 in Northern Ireland, where she finished second. Zulkifli’s teammate Lim, like King, is making his first run at the World Cup title. He already has claimed this year’s Malaysian Open and is the top ranked male bowler on the ABF Tour through five events. Del Rosario and Zulkifli are considered strong contenders to wrest the women’s crown from defending champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada, who will also compete in Singapore. Other previous women’s champions who have qualified are Shannon Pluhowsky of the USA (2002) and Martina Beckel of Germany (1992).
With Suarez out of the picture, the men’s field is wide open. Early favorites include the 1988 champion Mohammed Khalifa Al-Qubaisi of the UAE; Marcel van den Bosch of the Netherlands, who finished second to Suarez in 2003; and Paul Moor of England, who leads the men’s European Bowling Federation rankings.
More than 100 countries, including newcomers Afghanistan, Libya, Nigeria, Slovakia and Tajikistan, have pledged to send athletes to the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup thus far. The AMF Bowling World Cup is the world’s largest annual international sports championship in terms of number of participation countries. Additional information on the AMF Bowling World Cup, including archives and bulletins for this year’s tournament, is available on the Internet at www.amfbowlingworldcup.com.
2004 AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP, DEC. 5-12, SINGAPORE –
CONFIRMED PLAYERS AS OF OCTOBER 31, 2004
Country Women’s Division Men’s Division
Afghanistan
(none) Atiq Sikander
Argentina
Ana
Benko* Ruben Favero
Armenia
(none) Ashot
Grigoryan*
Australia
Ann-Maree
Putney* Jason Belmonte
Austria
Ivonne Altmuller
Gross* Peter Gangl
Azerbaijan
Stella
Jalalova* Rufat Farzaliyev
Bahamas
Joanne
Woodside-Powell* Sonith Lockhart*
Belarus Ina Kunts
Heorhi Pryhozhy
Belgum Wendy
Bergen* Ives Van Eijken*
Brazil
(none) Rogerio
Mattos
Bulgaria
Diliana
Tzvetkova* Alexander Lefterov
Canada
Kerrie Ryan-Ciach* (defending
champion) Jack Guay*
Costa Rica
Marie Ramirez*
Alejandro Reyna*
Czech Republic Petra
Cermakova Jiri Uhlir*
Denmark
Annette Biltoft
Jesper Agerbo
El Salvador
Aida
Granillo* Francisco Zelaya*
England
Donna
Adams* Paul Moor*
Estonia
Katrin
Vastra Udo Sulp*
Ethiopia Rita de
Franco* Alemayehu Mekonnen
Finland Leena Pulliainen
Kai Virtanen
France
Laurence
Fievet Bernard
Vandermeersch
French Guyane
(none) Maurice
Talane*
Germany
Martina Beckel* (1992
champion) Peter Knopp*
Gibraltar
Helen
McGunnigle* Graham Coles
Guam
(none) Reynaldo
Zialcita
Guatemala
Valerie Soto
Andrino Miguel Alberto Aguilar
Guernsey
Joanne
Johnson* Michael Richard Prigent
Hong Kong Jenny
Ho Hui Chi Nam
Hungary
Beatrix
Pesek* Tamas Holczer*
Iceland
(none) Magnus
Magnusson*
Indonesia
Angelino
Karto Bambang Sutomo
Iraq
(none) M. Maher
Ireland
Kathleen
Lyons Alan Gibbons*
Isle of Man
Pauline Maxwell
Birnie* Rob Birnie*
Israel
Mor
Aviram Yahav Rabin*
Italy
Roberta
Ferina Maurizio Celli
Japan Hiroko
Shimizu* Shoji Kawada
Jersey
Tracey
Aubert* Paul Gay
Jordan
(none) Mohammed
Masri
Kazakhstan
Vernonika
Solojenkina Kayrat Baybolatov*
Kuwait
(none) Fadhel Mehdi
Al Mousawi
Latvia
Madara
Lemane Nickolay Ovchinnikovs
Lithuania
Daiva
Perminiene Andrejus Puskariovas
Libya
(none) Reda Omar
Al-Fazani
Macao
Cheok Ling Alexandra
Foo Peng Sheng Cheng
Malaysia
Shalin
Zulkifli* Daniel Lim
Martinique
(none) Ludovic
Agier*
Mauritius
(none) John Koon*
Mexico
Iliana
Lomeli Daniel Velasco
Moldova
(none) Piotr Slav
Morocco
Daniele
Honigstein* Patrick Mehdi Leroy*
Netherlands Fiona de Koning
Marcel van den Bosch*
Netherlands Antilles
(none) Carlos Finx
Jr.
New Zealand
Ivena
Heald David Davies*
Northern Ireland
Karen Payne*
Kevin Horton*
Norway
Marianne Haukas*
Petter Hansen*
Panama
Karen
Holder* Jose Avendano
Philippines
Liza Del
Rasario* Chester King
Poland
Danuta
Dudko Pawel Bielski
Portugal
Maria Lucia
Marco Helder Gomes Santos
Puerto Rico Yoselin
Leon (none)
Reunion
Dominique
Merlo* Patrice Esparon*
Romania
(none) Bogdan-Adrian
Obada
Russia
Inna
Zavialova* Andrey Mizin
San Marino
Antonella
Frisoni Domenico Righi*
Scotland
Laura
Rhoney* Marco Jonsson
Slovenia
(none) Uros Kus
South Africa
Roxanne
Lotheringen Guy Caminsky*
Sweden
Helen
Johnsson Martin Larsen
Switzerland
Bigi
Manico* Mathieu Berges
Syria
(none) Bashar
Kalaji*
Tajikistan
(none) Abdugafurov
Olimjon
Thailand
Supaporn
Chuanprasertkit* Siriphon Mayura
Tunisia
Nadia
Louati Arif Mohamed-Hedi*
Turkey
Sevcan
Kilci Burak Natal
Ukraine
Olga
Tarasova Vitaliy Shilan*
United Arab Emirates
Rahma Mubarak Al-Sharqi*
Mohammed Khalifa Al-Qubaisi
(1988 champion)
United States
Shannon Pluhowsky* (2002
champion) Richard Fairley Jr.
Uzbekistan
Irina
Sapova* Shakasimov Shoabbos
Vanuatu
(none) Marin
Tranier*
Venezuela
Mariela
Alarza* Arturo Hernandez*
Vietnam
Huynh Ngoc Diem
Thuy Ly Liet
Virgin Islands
Theresa
Depka* (none)
Wales Sue
Thomas* Ron Chamberlain
* indicates previous World Cup participant
LONDON, ENGLAND, October 20, 2004 – More than 100 countries, including newcomers Afghanistan, Libya, Nigeria, Slovakia and Tajikistan, hope to send athletes to the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup in Singapore this December. Tournament manager Anne-Marie Board reports that, as of mid-October, 106 countries had requested entry forms for the Dec. 5-12 tournament. The 40th edition of AMF’s annual classic will be held at SuperBowl SAFRA Mount Faber bowling center. The early interest puts the AMF World Cup, the world’s largest annual international sports championship in terms of number of participating nations, on track for a new attendance mark. The current record of 88 nations was set in 2000 in Lisbon, Portugal.
Mohammed Khalifa Al-Qubaisi of the UAE, men’s 1988 champion, is one of four former champs who have qualified for Singapore thus far. Defending women’s champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada, Shannon Pluhowsky of the USA (2002), Martina Beckel of Germany (1992) and Al-Qubaisi are all seeking a second title. Other recent qualifiers include the UAE’s Rahma Mubarak Al-Sharqi; four-time World Cupper Ann-Maree Putney of Australia; Japanese national player Hiroko Shimizu; Swiss star Bigi Manico; Egyptian national player Tarek Helmy, South Africa’s Guy Caminsky and Swedish national champion Martin Larsen. The 2003 World Cup Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year, Patrick Leroy of Morocco and Beatrix Pesek of Hungary, will also compete in Singapore. Men’s defending champion C.J. Suarez of the Philippines is currently competing in his national qualifying tournament. Among those he must defeat is four-time World Cup champion and a member of the International Bowling Hall of Fame, Paeng Nepomuceno.
2004 AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP, DEC. 5-12, SINGAPORE – CONFIRMED PLAYERS
Country Women’s Division Men’s Division
Afghanistan
(none) Atiq Sikander
Argentina
Ana
Benko* Ruben Favero
Australia
Ann-Maree
Putney* Jason Belmonte
Austria
Ivonne Altmuller
Gross* Peter Gangl
Azerbaijan
Stella
Jalalova* Rufat Farzaliyev
Bahamas
Joanne
Woodside-Powell* Sonith Lockhart*
Belarus
Ina
Kunts Heorhi Pryhozhy
Belgium
Wendy
Bergen* Ives Van Eyken*
Brazil
(none) Rogerio
Mattos
Bulgaria
` Diliana
Tzvetkova* Alexander Lefterov
Canada
Kerrie Ryan-Ciach* (defending
champion) Jack Guay*
Costa Rica
Marie Ramirez*
Alejandro Reyna
Denmark Annette Biltoft
Jesper Agerbo
Egypt (none)
Tarek Helmy*
El Salvador
Aida
Granillo* Francisco Zelaya*
England
Donna
Adams* Paul Moor*
Estonia
Katrin
Vastra Udo Sulp*
Ethiopia
Rita De
Franco* Alemayehu Mekonnen
France
Laurence
Fievet Bernard Vandermeersch
French Guyane
(none) Maurice
Talane*
Germany
Martina Beckel* (1992
champion) Peter Knopp*
Gibraltar
Helen
McGunnigle* Graham Coles
Guam
(none) Reynaldo
Zialcita
Guatemala
Valerie Soto
Andrino Ronaldo Guillermo Gabriel Nuila
Guernsey
Joanne
Johnson* Michael Richard Prigent
Hong Kong Jenny
Ho Hui Chi Nam
Hungary
Beatrix
Pesek* Tamas Holczer*
Iceland
(none) Magnus
Magnusson*
Indonesia
Angelina
Karto Bambang Sutomo
Iraq
(none) M. Maher
Ireland
Kathleen
Lyons Alan Gibbons*
Isle of Man
Pauline Maxwell
Birnie* Rob Birnie*
Israel
Mor
Aviram Yahav Rabin*
Italy
Roberta
Ferina Maurizio Celli
Japan Hiroko
Shimizu* Shoji Kawada
Jersey
Tracey
Aubert* Paul Gay
Jordan
(none) Mohammed
Masri
Kazakhstan Vernonika Solojenkina
Kayrat Baybolatov*
Latvia
Madara
Lemane Nickolay Ovchinnikovs
Libya
(none) Reda Omar
Al-Fazani
Macao
Cheok Ling Alexandra
Foo Peng Sheng Cheng
Martinique
(none) Ludovic
Agier*
Mauritius
(none) John Koon*
Mexico
Iliana
Lomeli Daniel Velasco
Morocco Daniele Honigstein*
Patrick Leroy*
Netherlands Fiona de Koning
Marcel van den Bosch*
Netherlands Antilles
(none) Carlos Finx
Jr.
New Zealand
Ivena
Heald David Davies*
Northern Ireland
Karen Payne*
Kevin Horton*
Norway
Marianne Haukas*
Petter Hansen*
Poland
Danuta
Dudko Pawel Bielski
Portugal
Maria Lucia
Marco Helder Gomes Santos
Puerto Rico Joselin
Leon (none)
Reunion
Dominique
Merlo* Patrice Esparon*
Romania
(none) Obada Bogdan
San Marino
Antonella
Frisoni Domenico Righi*
Slovenia
(none) Uros Kus
Scotland
Laura
Rhoney* Marco Jonsson
South Africa
Roxanne
Lotheringen Guy Caminsky*
Sweden
Helen
Johnsson Martin Larsen
Switzerland
Bigi
Manico* Mathieu Berges
Syria
(none) Bashar
Kalaji*
Tajikistan
(none) Abdugafurov
Olimjon
Thailand
Supaporn
Chuanprasertkit* Siriphon Mayura
Tunisia
Nadia
Louati Arif Mohamed-Hedi*
Turkey
Sevcan
Kilci Burak Natal
Ukraine
Olga
Tarasova Vitaliy Shilan*
United Arab Emirates
Rahma Mubarak
Al-Sharqi*
Mohammed Khalifa Al-Qubaisi*
(1988 champion)
United States
Shannon Pluhowsky* (2002
champion) Richard Fairley Jr.
Uzbekistan
Irina
Sapova* Shakasimov Shoabbos
Vanuatu
(none) Marin
Tranier*
Venezuela
Mariela
Alarza* Arturo Hernandez*
Vietnam
Nuynh Ngoc Diem
Thuy Ly Liet
Virgin Islands
Theresa
Depka* (none)
Wales Sue
Thomas* Ron Chamberlain
* indicates previous World Cup participant
|
|
LONDON, ENGLAND, September 17, 2004 – Afghanistan will send a bowler to
the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup in Singapore. |
| The women’s division will include defending
champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada, 2002 champion Shannon Pluhowsky of the
USA, 1992 winner Martina Beckel of Germany, last year’s third-place finisher
Marie Ramirez of Costa Rica, and Asian Federation star Ann-Maree Putney of
Australia. |
|
2004 AMF BOWLING WORLD CUP, DEC. 5-12, SINGAPORE – CONFIRMED PLAYERS
| Afghanistan | (none) | Atiq Sikander |
| Australia | Ann-Maree Putney* | Jason Belmonte |
| Austria | Ivonne Altmuller* | TBA |
| Azerbaijan | Stella Jalalova* | Rufat Farzaliyev |
| Bahamas | Joanne Woodside-Powell* | Sonith Lockhart* |
| Canada | Kerrie Ryan-Ciach* (defending champion) | Jack Guay* |
| Costa Rica | Marie Ramirez* | TBA |
| Denmark | Annette Biltoft | Jesper Agerbo |
| El Salvador | Aida Granillo* | Francisco Zelaya* |
| England | Donna Adams* | Paul Moor* |
| French Guyane | (none) | Maurice Talane |
| Germany | Martina Beckel* (1992 champion) | Peter Knopp* |
| Gibraltar | Helen McGunnigle* | Graham Coles |
| Guernsey | Joanne Johnson* | TBA |
| Isle of Man | Pauline Maxwell Birnie* | Rob Birnie* |
| Israel | Mor Aviram | Yahav Rabin* |
| Italy | Roberta Ferina | Maurizio Celli |
| Japan | Hiroko Shimizu* | Makato Endou |
| Jersey | Tracey Aubert* | Paul Gay |
| Kazakhstan | Vernonika Solojenkina | Kayrat Baybolatov* |
| Macau | Cheok Ling Alexandra Foo | Peng Sheng Cheng |
| Martinique | TBA | Ludovic Agier* |
| Mauritius | (none) | John Koon* |
| Netherlands | Fiona de Koning | Marcel van den Bosch* |
| Netherlands Antilles | TBA | Carlos Finx Jr. |
| Northern Ireland | Karen Payne* | Kevin Horton* |
| Norway | Marianne Haukas* | Petter Hansen* |
| San Marino | Antonella Frisoni | Domenico Righi* |
| Scotland | Laura Rhoney* | Marco Jonsson |
| Syria | (none) | Bashar Kalaji* |
| Tunisia | TBA | Arif Mohamed-Hedi* |
| United States | Shannon Pluhowsky* (2002 champion) | Richard Fairley Jr. |
| Vanuatu | (none) | Marin Tranier* |
| Virgin Islands | Theresa Depka* | (none) |
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LONDON,
ENGLAND, August 18, 2004 – Costa Rica’s Marie Ramirez, the “hometown
favorite” of the 2003 AMF Bowling World Cup, will compete in the 40th
anniversary of the tournament this December in Singapore. |
| Another
returnee, Aida Granillo of El Salvador, holds the record for most AMF World Cup
appearances ever by a bowler, male or female, with 13. Granillo would like
nothing better than to commemorate her 14th World Cup by improving on
her best-ever finish of 7th place. That occurred in Guadalajara,
Mexico in 1988. |
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Canada’s
Jack Guay highlights the men’s division. Guay became the first bowler ever to
roll a perfect game in the AMF World Cup when he carded 12 straight strikes in
1994 in Hermosillo, Mexico. He duplicated that feat the following year in Sao
Paulo, Brazil, and remains the only person to roll two perfect games among the
19 recorded to date. |
| LONDON,
ENGLAND, March 30, 2004 – At least three former champions are expected to
compete for the 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup ladies’ honors in Singapore this
December. Last
year’s champion, Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada, ensured that she would defend
her title by capturing the Canadian World Cup qualifier March 20-21 in Surrey,
British Columbia. Ryan-Ciach of Mississauga, Ontario, defeated another Team
Canada member, Julie Johnson-Loyer of Chateauguay, Quebec, in the women’s
two-game championship match, 197-233 and 234-217. (As top seed in the stepladder
finals, Ryan-Ciach had to be defeated twice in the title bout). |
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Joining
Ryan-Ciach is the woman she defeated in Honduras to win the 2003 title, |
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The
women will be joined by the first person ever to roll a perfect game in the
Bowling World Cup, Jack Guay of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Guay, who last tried
for the men’s title in 1998 in Kobe, Japan, won the Canadian men’s World Cup
finals by defeating top-seeded Clint Klassen, 236-224 and 263-253.
Guay’s historic 300 game came in 1994 in Hermosillo, Mexico. He followed that
with a second perfect score one year later at the Bowling World Cup in Sao
Paolo, Brazil. He remains the only person who has rolled two 300 games in the 39
years of the AMF Bowling World Cup. His best showings came in 1993 and 1995
(South Africa and Brazil, respectively), when he placed fourth. This will be his
fifth AMF World Cup. |
|
The
U.S. men’s representative is 20-year-old Richard Fairley Jr. of Lynchburg,
Virginia. Fairley, a student at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, is in his first
year with the U.S. national team. He was a triple gold medallist at the 2003
Bowling Tournament of the Americas in Miami, Florida.
Germany is sending Peter Knopp as its men’s representative. Knopp has participated in several Bowling World Cup events as a player. He has also contributed to the event as one of the AMF tournament staff, most notably as a ball-driller and pro-shop services specialist.
Information
on the world’s largest annual international sports championship in terms of
number of participating nations can now be accessed on the World Wide Web at www.amfbowlingworldcup.com.
Tournament manager Anne-Marie Board made the announcement today during a press
conference held at the Marina Mandarin Hotel in Singapore, host city for the 40th
AMF World Cup.
Board said that the new
website contains facts, photos and statistics from each of the previous 39th
championships, as well as bulletins and news for the current year. It will be
updated as news becomes available. It will also be the official site for the
daily results during the tournament, which this year will be staged December
4-11 at the new SuperBowl at SAFRA, Telok Blangah. “This will be a boon for
journalists-- an online media guide that provides them with all the information
they might need on countries and individuals who have competed in the World Cup
throughout the years.”
Board
also noted afterward that the website, which can also be accessed through a link
on the AMF Bowling Worldwide website (www.amf.com),
is still a work in progress. “Regrettably, the records of some years have been
lost or are incomplete, and we invite anyone with World Cup archives from those
years to contact us, so we can add that information to the website. We would
also love to hear from the competitors who have special memories and stories to
tell from their participation. We can place these stories in a virtual
‘scrapbook’ on the website for all to share.”
Roland Teo, director of
SuperBowl Management Ptd Ltd, noted that the 34-lane host center would be the
sixth in the SuperBowl Chain and the first with synthetic lanes (AMF’s
top-of-the-line ‘HPL’ series). SuperBowl at SAFRA, Telok Blangah, is a
second-level center that is part of a larger recreational complex. It is
currently under construction and should be completed in September. “This will
be a S$3 million investment (approx. US$1.76 million/£1 million),” said Teo,
whose SuperBowl at Marina South hosted the 1991 FIQ/WTBA World Championships.
Teo also announced that the
Marina Mandarin Hotel would be the official headquarters hotel for this year’s
AMF Bowling World Cup.
Jessie Phua, president of the
Singapore Tenpin Bowling Congress, told journalists that the STBC plans to host
a series of qualifying events for its national team members to ensure “that
only our very best don our national colors in this [World Cup] field.”
Also present to answer
questions from the media were Bernard Gibbons, World Cup tournament director;
Lydia Rypcinski, World Cup media coordinator; Tony Davidson, director of
television for Matchroom Sports, which handles international TV distribution of
the World Cup broadcast; and Remy Ong, a member of the Singapore national
bowling team who has competed in two AMF World Cups.
Jack Oei, chairman of the
board of Jackie’s Bowl in Singapore and one of the key figures responsible for
bringing the AMF World Cup to the country in 1973, attended the press conference
as an honored guest of this year’s organizers. Henry Tan, former Singapore
national team member who finished second in the 1970 AMF Bowling World Cup, was
also present.
Bowlers from 77 nations
competed in the 2003 AMF Bowling World Cup in Tegucigalpa, Honduras last fall.
Defending women’s champion Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada has already qualified
to compete in Singapore. Last year’s men’s champion, C.J. Suarez of the
Philippines, must still win his national qualifying later this year to defend
his title.
| LONDON,
ENGLAND, December 15, 2003
– The 2004 AMF Bowling World Cup will be held December 4-11 in
Singapore. |
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“We are
excited to bring the AMF World Cup back to Singapore for the first time
since 1973,” said tournament manager Anne-Marie Board. “The sport of
bowling has a rich history in this country, with an avid and
knowledgeable fan base. We know those fans are going to give their full
support not only to the home country favorites, but also to each and
every bowler who competes next year. |
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The 1973
AMF Bowling World Cup attracted bowlers from 34 countries to Jackie’s
Bowl and was won by Bernie Caterer of Great Britain and Kesinee Srivises
of Thailand. Since then, the number of countries represented annually in
the World Cup has more than doubled, with a record 88 nations sending
athletes in 2000 to Lisbon, Portugal. |
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Bowlers from 77 nations competed in the 2003 AMF Bowling World Cup in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, this past fall. Men’s champion C.J. Suarez of the Philippines and women’s champ Kerrie Ryan-Ciach of Canada must win their national qualifying events again in 2004 to earn the right to defend their titles in Singapore. The AMF Bowling World Cup is the world’s largest annual international sports championship in terms of number of participating nations. AMF Bowling Worldwide Inc., the founder and principal sponsor of the Bowling World Cup, is the world’s largest owner and operator of bowling centers. AMF is also a leader in the manufacturing and marketing of bowling and billiards products. More information about AMF is available on the Internet at www.amf.com. |
