QubicaAMF WORLD CUP 2005

QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup title goes to Canada

Michael Schmidt of Canada had led all the way through the tournament but still had to work hard to beat Or Aviram of Israel in the final of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia. He won by two games to one, but the last game went to the final frame, thanks to Or sparing the 4 – 9. Michael needed 9 or more on the last ball to win – and he struck. The scores were 211 to 200, 205 to 233 and 216 to 214. Michael, from Winnipeg in Manitoba, was supported all week by his father, aunt and uncle. 'My father has been my coach and main supporter since my junior days', said Michael. 'He really helps me with my motivation and mental game.' Michael has not yet managed to qualify for his national team as an adult, but has represented Canada many times as a junior. This is his first adult international tournament. 'I was confident I could make the top 24', he said, 'and hoped to make the top eight. And from then on, whatever happened, happened.' Canada's national team coach, Sandy Lowe, however, was certain he would make the top eight. Michael went into the finals in top spot, having averaged 232.6 over the 32 games of qualifying.

He becomes the first Canadian man to win the Bowling World Cup title since Ray Mitchell in 1972 and follows in the footsteps of Kerrie Ryan-Ciach who won the women's title in 2003.

Lynda Barnes crowned QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Champion

Lynda Barnes from Dallas in Texas won the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia, today, beating Fiona Banks of England by two games to nil, 230 to 197 and 219 to 188. She qualified for the arena finals in pole position, averaging 235.2, which would have put her top of the men's section. In the finals she continued to sweep all before her, only being taken to a decisive game once. This is the third time in the past four years that the title has gone to the USA, and the 8th time an American women has won. 'Shannon Pluhowsky who won last year called me before I left for Slovenia,' said Lynda. 'She told me I had to defend the title for her!' When asked how this win ranked among all her other titles, she said: 'This is really special. I played the Bowling World Cup in Belfast in 1996, so I've had a 10 year build up to this. It means I can take my bowling shoes off!'

The bowling shoes will not be coming off just yet: Lynda will be bowling in her coffee morning league on Wednesday! Runner-up Fiona paid tribute to the new champion, saying: Sjhe's bowled really well all week and it's been great watching her.'

Israel against Canada completes the line up

The men's final in the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup will be between Or Aviram of Israel and Canadian Michael Schmidt. Or went into the ¼ finals as 6th seed, with Michael in pole position having led the tournament from the very first day.Or played Badr al Sheikh of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the first semi-final, losing the first game by 193 to 206. But he fought back and won the second by 225 to 148. The third game went to the tenth frame: after Badr had hit double, 8 in the tenth, Or needed to close the frame and did so in style going out with a turkey to win this important match 234 to 208. It will be the first time that a player from Israel has appeared in the final. Yahav Rabin reached the last eight in Pattaya, Thailand, in 2001 and the semi finals last year in Singapore. Now Or has improved on that record. 'To say it's tremendous is an understatement!' he said, straight after his win. Badr's coach, Mario Joseph, said: 'It was really tense out there. All credit to Or – he bowled really well and played a great area.' The second semi final featured Gery Verbruggen of Belgium against Michael Schmidt of Canada, the number one seed. Two wash outs for Gery meant a game of 189, while Michael finished with a 197 in the first game. Michael spared the 3, 4, 7, 10 in frame eight of the second game and while Gery left the 2, 4, 8, 10 and took only three of them. Despite a double in the 10th frame, Gery lost again, this time 211 to 214.

It's England against the USA in the final

England's Fiona Banks will face Lynda Barnes of the USA in the women's final of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup. The final will start at 15.15 local time here at the Gladiator Bowl in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Both women needed just two games to beat their semi final opponents this morning. The first match featured Fiona against Ann Louise Haugen of Norway, with Fiona bowling well and consistently, hitting two 211 games to Ann Louise's 181 and 186. Erik Garder, coach to the Norwegian players, commented: 'Ann Louise was pleased just to qualify to play here. Then she was delighted to make the top 24 and I told her just to go out and enjoy playing. Making the top eight was unbelievable and she said 'I've won already'. Now she is joint 3rd and it's like a dream to see her on the winner's rostrum. She is only 17 and she will certainly be back.' The second match saw some terrific bowling from both Lynda and Wendy Chai, the Malaysian player. Lynda hit 278 in the first game beating Wendy's 187, but the second game went to the tenth frame, Lynda winning by 227 to 225. Fiona will be bidding to be the first English player to win the Bowling World Cup for ten years, when Gemma Burden became the youngest ever girl to win, in Sao Paolo, Brazil. The USA has won the trophy more than any other country – 13 times -  and Lynda will be hoping to repeat the feat of her compatriot Shannon Pluhowsky last year in Singapore.

Women set for semi finals

The line-up for the semi finals of the women’s section of the 41^st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup will be Fiona Banks of England against Norway’s Ann Louise Haugen and Wendy Chai from Malaysia against American Lynda Barnes. In today’s quarter final games, Wendy saw off the challenge of Nadia Ageel (Al-Awahdi) from the Kingdom of Bahrain, needing three games in a close contest. She won by two games to one, 210 to 158, 182 to 213 and 192 to 162. Fiona needed just two games to beat the French champion, Isabelle Saldjian, who found herself knocked out at the 1/4 final stage for the second time, having also lost at this stage in Lisbon in 2000. Fiona showed consistency hitting 202 in each game against Isabelle’s 143 and 191.

Next on the lanes was an all-Scandinavian match with Sweden’s Helen Johnsson, a quarter finalist last year in Singapore, playing Ann Louise Haugen, younger sister of the men’s champion in Riga, 2002, Kim Haugen.  Ann Louise won the first game 191 to 176  but Helen came back very strongly hitting the highest game so far of the arena finals, a 269 to Ann Louise’s 147 so the match went to a deciding game. It went to Ann Louise 179 to 160. This means that Norway also win the trophy for top country.

The final match, top seed Lynda Barnes of the USA against Australia’s Clair Johnston, was a scorcher. The first game went to Lynda, 237 to 210 but Clair replied with 244 to 233. Lynda’s superb form continued and she ran out the winner in the final game by 246 to 163

Tomorrow, the first semi final match will start at 08.00, followed immediately by the second. The championship match will go on the lanes at around 15.15.

Semi final line-up for men complete

The semi final line up for the men in the 41^st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup is now complete and sees Badr al Sheikh of Saudi Arabia pitted against Or Aviram of Israel in the first match on the lanes tomorrow and Gery Verbruggen of Belgium up against Canadian Michael Schmidt in the second match. Gery beat Anders Ohman of Sweden in the first match this morning by 2 – 0, starting off with the first seven strikes to give him a 256 game against Anders’ 238. He then won the second game by 222 to 214.

Next up were Lucas Lignani of Argentina and Or Aviram. Lucas started strongly, winning the first game with 200 to Or’s 183, but an unconverted split at a crucial time saw him lose the second game 208 to 233, setting up a decider. Both players left some splits but four in a row was enough to give Or the game by 198 to 170.

Both Petter Hansen of Norway and Badr al Sheikh appeared very nervous and their match was not as high scoring as we had come to expect. It went to Badr by two games to one, 185 to 156, 143 to 212 and 213 to 167. Asked about Badr’s prospects tomorrow, Ibrahim Juraifani, President of the Saudi Arabian Federation, said: “I was very confident Badr would make the top eight because he’s a really talented kid. Making the top four is a bonus, but I’m expecting him to be champion!”

Top seed Michael Schmidt who had led from the very first set of the qualifying games was taken to the wire by Arturo Hernandez. It went to the final frame of the final game, Michael having to double in the tenth frame to win by two games to one, 205 – 201, 186 – 222 and 216 to 210.

The men’s semi finals are scheduled for Sunday November 20^th at 11.30 local time.

Top eight decided

With four games to go, any of five men could have taken the last two qualifying spots for the quarter-finals of this year's QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Then Badr al Sheikh from Saudi Arabia shot the tournament's fourth 300 game and leap frogged up the table. It was still not all over: four players were now in with a chance of that final coveted place. And so it went on, right to the wire. After five days and 32 games of bowling, Arturo Hernadez from Venezuela hit the strike at the crucial time to beat England's Steve Thornton by just 9 pins.

Earlier in the day the women's top eight had also been decided. The overnight standings changed little: only Clair Johnston of Australia moved up one place leaving Marieke de Jong of the Netherlands wondering 'What if?' as she dropped to 9th.

So the line-up for the quarterfinals, in order of play, reads:

Men
Gery Verbruggen (Belgium) v Anders Ohman (Sweden)
Lucas Legnani (Argentina) v Or Aviram (Israel)
Petter Hansen (Norway) v Badr al Sheikh (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)
Michael Schmidt (Canada) v Arturo Hernandez (Venezuela)

Women
Wendy Chai (Malaysia) v Nadia Ageel (Al-Awadhi) (Bahrain)
Fiona Banks (England) v Isabelle Saldjian (France)
Helen Johnsson (Sweden) v Ann Louise Haugen (Norway)
Lynda Barnes (USA) v Clair Johnston (Australia)

Matches will start at 08.00. All are best of three, so if one player wins the first two games, no third match will be necessary. There will be no break between matches and all will be recorded for television.

Top 24 in men's section of Bowling World Cup

After 24 games of impressive bowling, the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup is now down to the last 24 players in the men's section. The final round of qualifying saw Canadian Michael Schmidt stay on top, on 5640 (a 235 average), although his was not the highest set of the afternoon. 1471 from Or Aviram of Israel was enough to move him up into 6^th place. Lying in second place is Petter Hansen from Norway on 5521, last year’s runner up with Anders Ohman of Sweden in third on 5368.

The day also witnessed the third 300 game, this time from Tamas Szabo of Szentendre, Hungary. This was the first ever perfect game for Tamas, who owns a ‘bowling beer garden’ – a two lane centre attached to a restaurant and bar. "I've reached the first eight strikes two or three times,” he said, “but never hit the twelve. I felt better than I thought I would up until the final ball of the frame, and then I trembled a bit."

The last place in the top 24 went to William Nimick of Northern Ireland, who when asked if he was pleased with the result of his first Wold Cup replied: “Pleased? Just a wee bit!!”  Erik Kok of the Netherlands was the unlucky player finishing in 25^th, 48 pins off the cut. Tomorrow the men will bowl a further eight games, after which the field will be cut to the top eight who will bowl in the knock-out finals. Scores revert to zero at this point.

Excitement all the way in the final block of qualifying

The top players could relax and bowl their best in the final round of qualifying, but for those looking for one of the final spots in the top 24 in the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, today was nerve-wracking. When the dust had settled, the tears of joy flowed for Lorraine Casha of Malta and Natassa Rovothaki of Greece, who finished 24th and 23rd respectively, while Carmen Tang of Hong Kong and Cherie Shi Hua Tan of Singapore were left to rue what might have been. Lorriane's 24 game total was 4587, just 6 pins ahead of Carmen and 9 up on Cherie. Lorraine said: 'I was really worried. It was all so close and there were so many players who could all have made it. I am just so happy to be in the next round, especially as this is my first Bowling World Cup.' Word spread quickly among the bowling community on the Mediterranean island of Malta and she spent at least 30 minutes on her mobile phone as family and friends called to congratulate her.

At the top end of the table, Lynda Barnes of the USA continued her display of superb bowling and qualified in pole position on 5601, a 233.3 average. Second is Sweden's Helen Johnsson on 5435 with Fiona Banks of England in third on 5269. Lynda, who is married to pro bowler Chris Barnes, is impressed with the atmosphere here in Ljubljana, Slovenia. 'The people and the other players here are all so friendly and so happy to be taking part. I'm very lucky – Chris makes the money and I get to play because I love to play.' The top 24 play again tomorrow morning. After a further eight games, the top eight players will go forward to the knock out finals on Saturday, culminating in the championship match on Sunday afternoon which will be carried live by Slovenian TV.

Michael Schmidt continues where he left off

Michael Schmidt of Canada continued to carry all before him in the third qualifying round of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia, this evening. Petter Hansen of Norway, last year's runner up, set the target with 1428 over his six games for a total of 4229, an average of 234.9. In many tournaments that would have been far and away the top, but not here, not with the young man from Winnipeg in the field. Michael's six game set of  1436 (257, 194, 210, 290, 269, 216) was again the high block for the squad and it sees him on 4308, an average of 239.3. In third place is Gery Verbruggen of Belgium on 4121 and these three are the only playeres over 4000. The cut for the top 24 will be made tomorrow evening. At this stage, Dominic Lim Zhong from Singapore is in 24th place on but there are several players around this score and the final qualifying round will doubtless be closely fought.

Lynda Barnes storms into big lead

Lynda Barnes of the USA hit what she thinks is her best ever six game block in the third round of the women's qualifying here at the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia. 'I'm a terrible numbers person,' she said, 'but I can't remember bowling a series higher than this'. Her set of 1531 (279, 259, 246, 267, 247 and 233) puts her on a total of 4284 over her 18 games, a 238 average and a lead of 235 over Wendy Chai of Malaysia who is on 4049. Just 28 pins behind, on 4021, is Helen Johnsson of Sweden. Lynda opened up her set with a 279, composed of two spares then 10 in a row. Team USA coach Jeri Edwards joked: 'I reckon that if we had rolled two more frames in the practice session, Lynda would have hit 300 as she went on to hit six more strikes in the next game'. This is the second time that Lynda has competed in the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup: she also played in Belfast, N Ireland, in 1996 when she finished 7th. This year she has won a string of titles and medals since becoming the US Amateur champion.

The field will be cut to 24 after tomorrow's final six game qualifying session. In 24th place at the moment is Olga Tarasova of the Ukraine with an advantage of just three pins over Veronica Lalande-Lapointe of Canada. The top 24 will play a further eight games to determine the eight players to go through to the knock-out finals when the scores revert to zero. High game in the ladies' section so far is 280 by Piritta Kantola of Finland.

Malaysia and USA blitz the pins

Wendy Chai of Malaysia and Lynda Barnes of the USA threw down the gauntlet to the rest of the field hitting 1443 and 1453 respectively over the second block of six games at the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Wendy is now in the lead, on a total pinfall of 2766, a 230.6 average, just ahead of Lynda who is on 2753. Wendy was delighted with her performance today and said: 'I felt a lot more comfortable on the lanes. Perhaps I was more tense yesterday because it was the first day. I didn't change anything about my game for today and I didn't have to move much on the lanes to be able to deliver a good shot.' England's Fiona Banks was the third player to hit over 1400 for the six games. She shot 1402 and rose from 10th overnight to occupy fourth place on 2628, behind first round leader Helen Johnsson of Sweden who hit 1363 today and is now on 2704. In addition to the top four, two other players hit over 1300 -  Nardy del Biondo of Venezuela with 1317 and Nadia Ageel (Al-Awadhi) from the Kingdom of Bahrain with 1302. Nardy also boasts the women’s high games so far on 279.

The halfway stage of the qualifying has now been reached and the cut for the top 24 is at an average of 189.

Michael Schmidt still in the lead but Anders Ohman hits the big scores

Michael Schmidt of Canada may still be heading the leaderboard after 12 of the 24 qualifying games in the men's section of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, but the crowds were watching Anders Ohman of Sweden as he nearly shot back-to-back 300s. His first perfect game came on lanes 23 and 24. He then moved to the other end of the house, to lanes 5 and 6, and continued where he left off. He hit the first 10 in a row, before a slightly light ball left the four pin, giving him a 289 and 813 over his first three games. His 6-game block of 1536 moved him up from 51st place to 4th on a total of 2664. Asked what he changed from yesterday, he answered simply: 'Everything except my shoes! Seriously! I changed the ball, my line and my clothes – the bag with my clothes had been lost in transit and only arrived yesterday afternoon.'

Anders is competing in the Bowling World Cup for the third time but has yet to make the knock-out finals, a record he is determined to end here in Ljubjana. This was his 19th perfect game but his first for two years, the last one coming in the World Championships in Malaysia. Canada's Michael Schmidt shot 1459 - higher even than yesterday's score – to consolidate his position in the lead with a total pinfall of 2872. The 25-year-old student from Winnipeg, Manitoba, is aiming to become the first Canadian man since 1972 to win the title. Lying in second place on 2801 is last year's beaten finalist, Petter Hansen of Norway with Gery Verbruggen of Belgium in third on 2769.

Sweden tops the list for the women

Helen Johnsson of Sweden is top of the leaderboard after one squad of the women's section in the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, currently taking place at the Gladiator Bowling Centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Helen,  who is a 29-year-old economics secretary in her daily life, leads Wendy Chai of Malasia by 18 pins, with 18 games to go until the cut to the top 24. According to her coach, Magnus Johnson, she has been 'absolutely outstanding' this year. Both Helen and Wendy have a best finish of joint fifth – Wendy in Riga in 2002 and Helen last year in Singapore. 'I am determined to do better this time', said Helen after her 6 game block, a sentiment which Wendy echoed when she finished her block.

Lynda Barnes of the USA lies in third a further 24 pins behind Wendy with Marieke de Jong of the Netherlands in 4th place. Wendy's game of 268 stands as the high game in the women's section so far.

Canada in lead after first men's squad

Michael Schmidt of Canada stormed into the lead after the first session of bowling in the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Michael, who is 25 and comes from Winnipeg, Manitoba, shot 1413 over the first six games (an average of 235.5) to be ahead of Arnar Saegbergsson of Iceland in second on 1379 and Dominic Lim Zhong of Singapore in third on 1365. Last year's runner-up, Petter Hansen of Norway, is lying in fourth place. 'We have so many good bowlers in Canada,' said Michael, 'that just making the team is tough. I had to beat Jack Guay, our representative last year and the first guy to shoot a perfect game in the Bowling World Cup, to win this trip. Now I just hope to build on this foundation and see how far I can go in the tournament.'

That was not the only excitement at the Gladiator Bowling Centre. England's Steve Thornton shot a perfect game to the delight of the large crowd watching. 'I thought it might be possible from about the fourth frame,' siad Steve. I liked the shape of the ball and felt it was coming off my hand really well, and the last three strikes in the 10th were absolutely flush.' Steve was presented with a pin from the deck and will win the trophy for high game of the tournament.

The first six games in the women's section will start at 1400 local time. For full results please go to www.amfbowlingworldcup.com or www.arenalive.si and click on the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup logo.

41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup gets off to flying start

The Gladiator Bowling Centre in Ljubjlana, Slovenia, was the place to be this evening, November 13th, for the exciting opening ceremony of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup.

After the parade of the nations, as impressive as ever, Slovenian representative, Barbara Brežič, took the oath on behalf of all the players, with Milan Lukič performing the same duty on behalf of the judges and officials.

Sergei Račman, President of the Management Board of Kolosej, the host company, told the players and guests that it was an honour to have been awarded the tournament. 'I am convinced this event will contribute greatly to the development of bowling in Slovenia,' he said.

John Walker, Chief Executive of the new QubicaAMF partnership, welcomed all the players, officals, volunteers and guests: 'We are a global company and this is the most global of bowling events,' he said, before thanking all those involved in organising this prestigious tournament.

Finally, the Mayor of Ljubljana, Danica Simšič, welcomed all the visitors and expressed the hope that we would find time to explore this beautiful city. She then cut the ribbon to offiically open the event and invited everyone to enjoy a display of Slovenian culture before the competition starts in earnest.

Tournament play starts tomorrow with the first squad of men at 8.00 am. All the participants will play 24 games before the cut to the top 24 on Thursday evening. The finals will be televised live on Sunday, November 20th.

86 nations are taking part in the biggest sports event in the world, in terms of numbers of countries participating.

AMF WORLDCUP 2005

With just one week to go to the start of the 41^st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup in Ljubljana, Slovenia, 90 nations have confirmed their participation and among the players will be two former champions. Joining Mika Luoto, already declared as Finland’s entrant, will be Ahmed Shaheen of Qatar, champion in 1999 when the tournament was held in Las Vegas, USA. Ahmed also reached the quarter finals in 2002 in Riga, Latvia, when Mika won. “We are very pleased to see Ahmed return again,” said Anne-Marie Board, 41^st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Manager. “He has already taken part eight times and very few bowlers get the chance to compete that many times.

“We now know that we will also be welcoming 4 countries for the first time - the Azores, Libya, Serbia-Montenegro and Slovakia. It is particular pleasure to see so many nations joining us, including, for the first time, all those which joined the European Union last year. I am sure they will enjoy their World Cup experience and become an important part of the World Cup family.” Bowling is a sport for all ages as well, and the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup demonstrates this. “Our oldest competitor this year will be Antonieta Costa from the Azores who is 70,” said Anne-Marie. By contrast our youngest are Natalia Martin of Poland  and Ilkin Babayev of Azerbaijan who are both16. But there are lots of 17 and 18 year olds as well!” The 41^st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup will begin on Sunday November 13^th and the champions will be crowned a week later in the Gladiator Bowl. Of the 159 players coming to the event, 60 are taking part for the second time or more.

A list of players is given below in alphabetical order by country (men first):
Afghanistan: Atiq Sikander
Argentina: Lucas Legnani, Ana Maria Benko
Australia: George Frilingos, Clair Johnston
Austria: Leopold Grundschober, Evelyn Tutschka
Azerbaijan: Ilkin Babayev, Nadezhda Logetskaya
Azores: Chico Pontes, Antonieta Costa
Bahrain: Hussain Ghuloom, Nadia Ageel Al-Awadhi
Belarus: Heorhi Pryhozhy, Ina Kunts
Belgium: Gery Verbruggen, Sandrine Peelman
Brazil: Bira Teodoro
Bulgaria: Zabi Sikander, Polina Shishmanova
Canada: Michael Schmidt, Veronica Lalande-Lapointe
Costa Rica: Marco Odio
Croatia: Krunoslav Struml, Ljiljana Rakamaric
Cyprus: Costas Kyriakou, Myria Kastori
Czech Republic: Antonin Nosek, Dana Hanusova
Denmark: Mikael Braendeskov Anderson, Trine Daugbjerg Simonsen
Dominican Republic: Victor Richards Jr, Aura Guerra
Egypt: Samy-Anna Saba
El Salvador: Julio Acosta Jr, Aida Granillo
England: Steve Thornton, Fiona Banks
Estonia: Raul Beekman, Piia Lutt
Ethiopia: Mekuria Habteyes, Rita De Franco
Finland: Mika Luoto, Piritta Kantola
France: Thierry Sacco, Isabelle Saldjian
French Guiana: Maurice Talane
Germany: Kai Guenther, Patricia Schwarz
Gibraltar: Graham Coles, Julie Jackson
Greece: Leonidas Maragos, Natassa Rovothaki
Guam: Reynaldo Zialcita
Guatemala – players to be announced
Guernsey: Derek Tomlin, Joanne Johnson
Hungary: Tamas Szabo, Beatrix Pesek
Iceland: Arnar Saebergsson, Gudny Gunnarsdottir
India: Shashi Kumar, Sumithi Nallabantu
Iraq: Shant Panos Tomassian
Ireland: Alan Bride, Laura Meade
Isle of Man: David Hill, Diane Moore
Israel: Or Aviram, Yifat Tal
Italy: Massimo Pirozzi, Anna Cionna
Japan: Koichi Takahashi, Suzuna Miyagi
Jersey: Lee Jarvis, Stephanie Le Lion
Jordan: Raid Al Manasrah
Kazakhstan: Makhmut Lazaridi, Veronika Solozhenkina
Kuwait: Khalid Al Dubyyan
Latvia: Aleksandrs Zavjalovs, Irina Tomoshenkova
Libya: Reda Omar Al Fazani
Lithuania: Dainius Zaltauskas, Daiva Perminiene
Macao: Peng Sheng Cheng, Filomena Choi
Malaysia: Alex Liew, Wendy Chai
Malta: Kenneth Arpa, Lorraine Casha
Martinique: Ludovic Agier
Mauritius: John Koon
Mexico: Daniel Falconi, Iliana Lomeli
Moldova: Eduard Capatina, Elena Capatina
Morocco: Patrick Mehdi Leroy, Daniele Amsellem
Nepal: Kharma Ghale
Netherlands: Erik Kok, Marieke de Jong
New Caledonia: Marin Tranier
New Zealand: Jason Waters, Belinda Tan
Northern Ireland: William Nimick, Lynda Black-Watson
Norway: Petter Hansen, Ann Louise Haugen
Philippines: Tyrone Ongpauco, Ellen Ramos
Poland: Marek Przezpolewski, Natalia Martin
Portugal: Nuno Martinho, Manuela Soares
Puerto Rico: Edmanuel Ramirez, Yoselin Leon
Qatar: Ahmed Shaheen
Reunion: Thia Song Fat, Marie-Pierre Tartaroli
Romania: Alex Telejman, Odette Piticariu
Russia: Nikita Koshelev, Olga Tabachcova
Saudi Arabia: Badr Al Sheikh
Scotland: Mark Biondi, Jacqui McColl
Serbia-Montenegro: Dejan Radulovich, Gordana Radulovich
Singapore: Dominic Lim Zhong, Cherie Shi Hua Tan
Slovakia: Ladislav Frunyo, Monika Bozsoky
Slovenia: Marjan Pecaver, Barbara Brezic
South Africa: Guy Caminsky, Lisa Paluzzi
Spain: Samuel Castillo, Sandra Torrents
Sweden: Anders Ohman, Helen Johnsson
Switzerland: Jean-Marc Godel, Bigi Manico
Syria: Bashar Kalaji
Tunisia: Arif Mohammed-Hedi,
Turkey: Onur Demirkiran
UAE: Nayef Eqab Alabdool, Rahma Mubarak al Sharqi
Ukraine: Sergii Gontar, Olga Tarasova
USA: Ryan Page, Lynda Barnes
Uzbekistan: Sergey Sapov, Elena Sergeeva
Venezuela: Arturo Hernandez, Nardy del Biondo
Wales: Steve Dalton, Sue Thomas

STARS GALORE IN THE 41ST QUBICAAMF BOWLING WORLD CUP

Anne-Marie Board, QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Manager, said: “We are very pleased to welcome back Mika Luoto from Finland, who won the title in Riga, Latvia, in 2002. He is our only returning champion so far but many of the players who have won through to the event are top players and we expect an exciting tournament. Also, we do have five players who have won the coveted ‘Sportsman of the Tournament’ award, which is voted for by the players themselves.”

In addition to Mika, the talent will be there in no small measure. In the men’s section, Petter Hansen from Norway will be trying to go one better than last year when he finished runner-up, while players like Steve Thornton (England), Kai Guenther (Germany), Alex Liew (Malaysia) and Daniel Falconi (Mexico) will join players already entered such as Anders Ohman of Sweden and Rhino Page of the USA as favourites to take the title. And 20 years after finishing second, in Seoul, Korea, Erik Kok of the Netherlands will be making a welcome return.

In the women’s section, Patricia Schwarz will be representing Germany and hoping to make it a family double as she is married to Mika. Anne-Marie commented: “Their 18-month old daughter Mia will be with them, hoping that both Mum and Dad can win the tournament. That really would be a first for the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup!”

Norway’s Ann Louise Haugen will also be trying to take the trophy back to her family – her brother, Kim, won the cup in 2001 in Pattay, Thailand. But they will have plenty of competition, not least from Fiona Banks of England, Piritta Kantola of Finland, Wendy Chai of Malaysia and the USA’s Lynda Barnes.

Three of the players can boast perfect games in the Bowling World Cup: Kai Guenther of Germany, and Lisa Paluzzi of South Africa, who both hit 300s in the 2002 Bowling World Cup in Riga, Latvia, and Petter Hansen of Norway whose perfect game came last year in Singapore.

“We are also looking forward to welcoming many players back again,” said Anne-Marie. “Shant Panos Tomassian from Iraq, who was such a star last year, will be competing again, as well as Maurice Talane from French Guiana who will be taking part for the fifth time and Derek Tomlin of Guernsey, making his sixth appearance. Patrick Leroy of Morocco will be with us for the ninth time, but pride of place will go again to Aida Granillo of El Salvador, who will be competing for an amazing 15th time! We are delighted that so many players come back time and time again!”

Players so far declared are (in alphabetical order by country are (men first):
Afghanistan: Atiq Sikander
Argentina: Lucas Legnani, Ana Maria Benko
Australia: George Frilingos, Clair Johnston
Austria: Leopold Grundschober, Evelyn Tutschka
Azerbaijan: Ilkin Babayev, Nadezhda Logetskaya
Azores: Francisco Paolo Avila de Oliveira Pontes, Maria Antonieta Mendes do Couto Costa
Bahrain: Mohamed Janahi, Nadia Ageel Al-Awadhi
Belarus: Heorhi Pryhozhy, Ina Kunts
Belgium: Gery Verbruggen, Sandrine Peelman
Bulgaria: Zabi Sikander, Polina Shishmanova
Canada: Michael Schmidt, Veronica Lalande-Lapointe
Croatia: Krunoslav Struml, Ljiljana Rakamaric
Czech Republic: Vaclav Postranecky, Dana Ahnusova
Denmark: Mikael Braendeskov Anderson, Trine Davgbjerg Simonsen
Dominican Republic: Victor Richards Jr, Aura Guerra
Egypt: Samy-Anna Saba
El Salvador: Julio Acosta Jr, Aida Granillo
England: Steve Thornton, Fiona Banks
Estonia: Raul Beekmann, Piia Lutt
Finland: Mika Luoto, Piritta Kantola
France: Thierry Sacco, Isabelle Saldjian
French Guiana: Maurice Talane, Justine Arcas
Germany: Kai Guenther, Patricia Schwarz
Gibraltar: Graham Coles, Julie Jackson
Guam: Reynaldo Zialcita
Guernsey: Derek Tomlin, Joanne Johnson
Hungary: Tamas Szabo, Beatrix Pesek
Iceland: Arnar Saebergsson, Gudny Gunnarsdottir
India: Shashi Kumar, Sumathi Nallabantu
Iraq: Shant Panos Tomassian
Ireland: Alan Bride, Laura Meade
Isle of Man: David Hill, Diane Moore
Israel: Or Aviram, Yifat Tal
Italy: Massimo Pirozzi, Anna Cionna
Japan: Koichi Takahashi, Suzuna Miyagi
Jersey: Lee Jarvis, Stephanie Le Lion
Jordan: Mohammed Masri
Kazakhstan: Makhmut Lazaridi, Veronika Solozhenkina
Kuwait: Khalid Al Dubyyan
Libya: Reda Omar Al Fazani
Lithuania: Dainius Zaltauskas, Daiva Perminiene
Macao: Peng Sheng Cheng, Filomena Choi
Malaysia: Alex Liew, Wendy Chai
Malta: Kenneth Arpa, Lorraine Casha
Martinique: Ludovic Agier
Mauritius: John Koon
Mexico: Daniel Falconi, Iliana Lomeli
Moldova: Eduard Capatina, Elena Capatina
Morocco: Patrick Mehdi Leroy, Daniele Amsellem
Netherlands: Erik Kok, Marieke de Jong
New Caledonia: Marin Tranier
New Zealand: Jason Waters, Belinda Tan
Northern Ireland: William Nimick, Lynda Black-Watson
Norway: Petter Hansen, Ann Louise Haugen
Poland: Marek Przezpolewski, Natalia Martin
Portugal: Nuno Martinho, Manuela Soares
Puerto Rico: Edmanuel Ramirez, Yoselin Leon
Reunion: Thia Song Fat, Marie-Pierre Tartaroli
Russia: Nikita Koshelev, Tatiana Smirnova
Scotland: Mark Bondi, Jacqui McColl
Serbia-Montenegro: Dejan Radulovich, Gordana Radulovich
Singapore: Dominic Lim Zhong, Cherie Shi Hua Tan
Slovakia: Ladislav Frunyo, Monika Bozsoky
Slovenia: Marjan Pecaver, Barbara Brezic
South Africa: Guy Caminsky, Lisa Paluzzi
Sweden: Anders Ohman, Helen Johnsson
Switzerland: Jean-Marc Godel, Bigi Manico
Syria: Bashar Kalaji
Tunisia: Arif Mohammed-Hedi, Fatma Ben Abdallah
UAE: Nayef Eqab Abdulla Jaber Alabdool, Rahma Mubarak Suliman Salem al Sharqi
Ukraine: Sergii Gontar, Olga Tarasova
USA: Rhino Page, Lynda Barnes
Uzbekistan: Sergey Sapov, Elena Sergeeva
Venezuela: Arturo Hernandez, Nardy del Biondo
Wales: Steve Dalton, Sue Thomas

The 41st edition of the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup will be held at the Gladiator Bowling Centre, a brand new centre which opened in May 2005.

The five players who have won the sportsperson of the tournament are:
Atiq Sikander (Afghanistan – 2004)
Patrick Leroy (Morocco - 2003)
Guy Caminsky (South Africa – 2002)
Bashar Kalaji (Syria – 2001)
Beatrix Pesak (Hungary – 2003)

QUBICAAMF BOWLING WORLD CUP WELCOMES FIVE FIRST-TIME COUNTRIES

Just when we were wondering how many more countries could possibly participate in the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, five more nations sign up for this year’s event in Ljubljana, Slovenia, from November 12th to 20th: the Azores, Libya, Mongolia, Serbia-Montenegro and Slovakia.

“I am always really delighted to be able to welcome ‘newcomer’ nations to the event,” commented QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup manager, Anne-Marie Board. “We already have 91 nations who have registered their participation for this year and there are more to come. We may even make the magic figure of 100!”

Rida Omar Al-Fazani of Libya had intended to compete last year in Singapore but hit visa problems. He lives in Tripoli and has been bowling for just over one year. But he says: “I like this game more than anything. It is in my blood now!” This year he will fulfil his dream and represent his country in a major bowling event for the first time.

Slovakia will be sending Monika Bozsoky and Ladislav Frunyo who won their way through to the Bowling World Cup at the national tournament, held at Bowling Club 300 in Nove Zamky last Sunday (September 26th).

Anne-Marie Board went on to say: “We are very much looking forward to greeting Monika and Ladislav and also Dejan Radulovich and Gordana Radulovich from Serbia-Montenegro. Both of these countries are geographically close to Slovenia. The Azores maybe small but they are a welcome addition to the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup family and the participation of Mongolia is a real coup.”

The names of the competitors from the Azores and Mongolia will be announced later.

The event will take place in the Gladiator Bowling Centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia in November. Last year, players from a record 95 countries took part in the tournament in Singapore, won by Kai Virtanen of Finland and Shannon Pluhowsky of the USA.