Despite bowls sometimes being seen as a senior’s sport, three youngsters taught the old dogs some new tricks, claiming top spots in the Womens and Mens Singles Championships at Sidney Lawn Bowling Club.
Two tournaments were held over the first two weekends in July, with some competitive matches taking place.
Trevor Birrell and Sierra Trueman won the male and female championships respectively, with Michael Fraser coming second in the Mens.
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President Ron Smith has been impressed with the bowlers’ progression and their winning performances.
“It’s not too usual,” says Smith. “Their future is great, they’re going to be bowling this weekend at provincials in Nanaimo, and then going on to nationals.” Those are held Aug. 6 to 10 at Juan de Fuca Lawn Bowling Club.
Smith says the achievements are made more remarkable by the age of the competitors, with Birrell and Trueman both being under 19 and competing as juniors in a senior field. Fraser, a recent arrival from Ontario, falls into the U25 category. He’s joining some good young bowlers at the club, with Birrell and Trueman placing first and second at the BC Junior Lawn Bowling Championship two years ago in Saanich and doing well last year too.
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Youth bowlers are encouraged to participate as much as possible and are eligible to bowl in all of the club’s tournaments. In recent months, bowling clubs have sought to inject new blood into their ranks, with Central Saanich Lawn Bowling Club even hosting a workshop for interested high-school students.
Sidney Lawn Bowling Club has been running since 1998 and strives to be “the friendliest club on Vancouver Island.”
It has 160 active bowlers and 20 social members, and maintains an energetic junior program.
Anyone interested in joining is encouraged to drop by any Sunday afternoon until October to watch the bowlers in action. It says age is no barrier to the sport, with the club’s youngest bowlers being children and the oldest in their mid-90s.
The club is located at 9580 Fifth St. and can be contacted by telephone on 250-516 2229 or via their website at sites.google.com/site/sidneylawnbowlingclub.
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