World Tenpin Bowling Association

Last updated
World Tenpin Bowling Association
AbbreviationWorld Bowling or WTBA
First event1952 [1]
Headquarters Helsinki, Finland [2]
PresidentSheikh Talal Mohammed Al-Sabah [3]
Website World Bowling

The World Tenpin Bowling Association is the world governing body of ten-pin bowling, and one of the two sections of the International Bowling Federation. They promulgate and enforce playing rules and equipment specifications, conduct world championships, oversee zone championships, and grant approval for other international tournaments.

Contents

The WTBA manages the World Bowling Tour.

History

International bowling began during the 1930s under the International Bowling Federation. The attempt to unite all the bowlers in the world created Fédération Internationale des Quillers (FIQ) in 1952; the body renamed itself World Bowling in 2014.

Worldwide Zones

It is divided into the following geographical Zones: [4]

National organizations qualify to become WB member federations based on certain admission criteria. Currently, WB has 123 members. In some cases, the member represents only the Tenpin discipline or the Ninepin discipline. In other cases the member represents both disciplines.

The WB Presidium (similar to an Executive Committee) is responsible for legislative matters, membership fees, fiscal plans and general administration of WB programs. It also has authority to hear and determine disputes between WB members or between WB members and WTBA.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ten-pin bowling</span> Type of bowling

Ten-pin bowling is a type of bowling in which a bowler rolls a bowling ball down a wood or synthetic lane toward ten pins positioned evenly in four rows in an equilateral triangle. The objective is to knock down all ten pins on the first roll of the ball, or failing that, on the second roll.

Tomas Leandersson was a Swedish ten-pin bowler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Bowling Federation</span>

International Bowling Federation (IBF), known as the Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs (FIQ) from 1952 to April 2014) and as World Bowling (WB) from April 2014 to November 2020, is the world governing body of nine-pin and ten-pin bowling. IBF was founded in 1952 in Hamburg, Germany by officials of the International Bowling Association to foster worldwide interest in amateur ten-pin and nine-pin bowling, as well as international friendship by encouraging world and zone tournaments and other competition between bowlers of different countries. IBF has been recognized by the International Olympic Committee since 1979 as the governing body for bowling sports. Starting with five member federations in 1952, it grew to 141 in 2010.

Cass Edwards is a UK-based retired tenpin bowler turned sports broadcaster and journalist. He has been a play by play colour commentator for ten-pin bowling since 2001, covering international bowling events including the Weber Cup, World Tenpin Masters WTBA World Championships and the AMF Bowling World Cup, with many hundreds of hours of TV commentary on the sport he played for over 40 years starting in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Tenpin Bowling Federation</span>

The European Tenpin Bowling Federation (ETBF) is a ten-pin bowling organisation that hosts the worldwide European Bowling Tour (EBT), similar to that of the tour held by the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). The EBT is one of three tours that form part of the ranking system of the World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA), with the top 8 bowlers each year invited to the World Ranking Masters. The tour is run by the European Tenpin Bowling Federation. The ETBF is a subsection, or "European Zone", of the WTBA under the Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs.

The World Ranking Masters was ten-pin bowling's international ranking system, as with professional tennis. It was governed by the World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA). The rankings were formulated at the end of the three international tours, the European, Americas and Asian tours.

The World Tenpin Bowling Championships is a global event that invites all countries that are members of International Bowling Federation to participate.

The European Bowling Tour (EBT) is one of three tenpin bowling tours (Europe, Americas, Asia) that form part of the ranking system of the World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA).

Lita dela Rosa was a Filipino 4-time World champion in Tenpin Bowling from Cebu, Philippines. She was posthumously inducted in the World Bowling Hall of Fame and in the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japan Bowling Congress</span>

Japan Bowling Congress (JBC) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of ten-pin bowling in Japan. The JBC sanctions tournaments and other functions related to amateur bowling for both men and women. The current president of the JBC is Tsutomu Takebe. The JBC was established during the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Its headquarters is in Shiba, Minato, Tokyo.

Ann-Maree Putney of New South Wales is a female Australian two-time World Champion ten-pin bowler. In 2009, she was elected to the World Bowling Writers International Bowling Hall of Fame. She competed for Australia for 26 years, winning a total of 30 medals in international competitions such as the World, Asian, and Commonwealth Championships. In 2019, she was inducted into the Tenpin Bowling Australia (TBA) Hall of Fame as well as the Hunter Region Sporting Hall of Fame. Her career spanned 34 years.

The Philippine Bowling Congress Inc. or more popularly known as Philippine Bowling Congress and PBC was the governing body for tenpin bowling in the Philippines from 1977 to 2016. The Philippine Bowling Federation Inc.PBF replaced it as the appointed member of the International Bowling Federation (IBF), Asian Bowling Federation (ABF), and Philippine Olympic Committee (POC). in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowling in India</span>

Tenpin bowling is a popular and recreational sport in India. The activity is administered by the Bangalore-based Tenpin Bowling Federation of India. It organises the National Bowling League comprising championships for amateurs, corporate team tournaments as well as a national tour for professionals. Many Indians take up bowling for fitness, rather than for recreation. Bowling alleys in India are commonly a part of multiplexes and malls.

The World Bowling Tour, a major professional tour, unites bowlers from selected major professional and amateur organizations through a series of events organized by World Bowling.

The World Bowling Singles Championships is a Ten-pin bowling event open to members of World Bowling. This gives World Bowling a World Championship event every year, filling a void left from previous years. Each member federation can send up to two men and two women to compete. The event is split up into two separate tournaments, one for men and one for women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocio Restrepo</span> Colombian ten-pin bowler

Rocío del Pilar Restrepo Lugo is a Colombian ten-pin bowler who now resides in the United States. She bowls professionally on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour, and also internationally as a member of Team Colombia.

Esther Cheah Mei Lan is a Malaysian female medal winning tenpin bowler who has represented Malaysia in several international competitive events including Asian Games, Southeast Asian Games. She is currently considered one of the most experienced and finest female bowlers to have represented Malaysia internationally.

Shannon Pluhowsky is an American left-handed ten-pin bowler who competes in the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) and internationally. Pluhowsky is a 21-time member of Team USA (2001–2021), and a former four-time member of Junior Team USA (2000–2003). Pluhowsky has six professional championships, including major wins at the 2006 USBC Queens in Reno, Nevada, the 2014 BPAA Women's All-Star in Rockford, Illinois, and the 2021 PWBA Tour Championship in Reno, Nevada.

Cara Honeychurch of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia is a female world champion tenpin bowler. She won the AMF Bowling World Cup in 1996 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and voted Bowler of the Year by the World Bowling Writers the same year. She was inducted to the World Bowling Writers' International Hall of Fame in 1998.

References

  1. "History". World Bowling. World Tenpin Bowling Association World Tenpin Bowling Association. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  2. Pluckhahn, J. Bruce. "Bowling: International Competition". Britannica. Britannica. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  3. Tidbury, Megan. "Press release: Sheikh Talal Mohammed Al-Sabah to lead world bowling". Norges Bowlingforbund. World Bowling. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  4. "International Bowling Federation Geographical Zones". International Bowling Federation. Retrieved 2 April 2021.

See also