19th November, Ljubljana: Wendy Chai of Malaysia was the sole Asian lady to advance into the semifinals of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup while American champion, Lynda Barnes kept her winning ways to edge closer to glory.

Both Asian girls had nervous starts, but Wendy Chai of Malaysia got her line quickly and had a turkey and a double but suffered three open frames. Five opens by Nadia Ageel Al-Awadhi of Bahrain and two doubles lost her too many pins, so she had to win the next two games against a formidable opponent.

What a contrast after winning the first game, 201-158. Chai struggled through with spares and couldn't buy more than two strikes whilst Nadia threw two turkeys despite two open frames. She seemed much more focused and in control after a 213-182 second game win.

It was nip and tuck through the last game, mostly nine-spares, but Chai persevered and emerged the victor, 192-162 and two games to one.

A disappointing start from Isabelle Saldjian, French national champion for the past eight years. It must be a long time since she rolled a game as low as 143 in a championship match. Her opponent, Fiona Banks of England cruised to a comfortable 202.

A brace of 202 games gave Banks the match over just two games and a meet with the winner of the match between Johnsson and Haugen.

The stars of Scandinavia have a healthy respect for each other's bowling and maybe they were trying to psyche each other out in this opening duel. Helen Johnsson of Sweden came back with a bang in the second game, stringing strikes to bowl the high game of the day.

The second seed lost the first game to Ann Louise Haugen of Norway, 179-191. Could she keep this impetus through the final game? No, she couldn't and she dropped down into the fifth to eighth positions as Ann got through with a 179 to Johnsson's 160. Ann's brother, Kim Haugen won the World Cup in 2001, now she has the ambition to win here in Slovenia.

Top seed, Lynda Barnes of USA, came out with all guns blazing with a 237, but Clair Johnston of Australia, did not seemed to be fazed with a 210, although now she had to win two games to advance to the semifinals tomorrow.

Clair really wasn't fazed by the power of Lynda and edged near to glory with a 244 to win by 11 pins and force the match into the third game. All credit to Clair for taking the American champion to three games. Lynda kept her winning ways with yet another great 200-plus and advanced to the semifinals to take on Wendy Chai of Malaysia on Sunday morning.

Story by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International and photos by Hiro Noda of Japan.

19th November, Ljubljana: Top seed, Michael Schmidt of Canada survived the knockout quarterfinals stage and looks good for the finals of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup as the field narrows down to the last four.

The last quarterfinals match came down to a tenth frame finish in the opener with top seed, Micahel Schmidt needing a double and seven pins to win and he got three strikes.

Schmidt could not hold a tough Venezuelan down and Arturo Hernandez came right back to take the second game, 222-186, so the last three matches going the full distance. Once again the Canuck needed a double and count in the tenth frame and once again he struck out. So, the number one seed survives this year and he looks good for progress to the final.

Gery Verbruggen of Belgium, started with seven strikes to take the first game, 256-238 and then clinched the match with a 222-214 victory in the second game to defeat Andres Ohman of Sweden, two games to one.

The first match of the day to go to three games and advantage Israel with Or Aviram coming through in a closely fought finale. Four strikes in a row from the seventh frame saw him coast home to victory by 28 pins over Argentina's Lucas Legnani ending the match, two to one.

First blood to Badr Al Sheikh of Saudi Arabia in a low scoring affair, and an especially disappointing display from the Norwegian Petter Hansen, who was runner-up in the World Cup in Singapore last year.

Hansen changed his bowling ball in the final frame of the first game and hit the pocket strike, maybe he would be better in the second game. Hansen rallied to a 212-143 win in the second game, so it went into a decider. Hansen was looking better and Al Sheikh had a big frown. But the lanes were tight now, so anything could happen.

It was not Norway's day and the sun shone on Badr Al Sheikh as he got the edge and knocked out the tall Norwegian, two games to one, 213-167 in the decider.

Story by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International and photos by Hiro Noda of Japan.

18th November, Ljubljana: The last surviving eight men booked their place in the knockout stage of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup when the top 24 completed their final eight-games Friday afternoon.

Coming home with a huge total pinfall of 7444 over the 32 games to date, Michael Schmidt of Winnipeg, Canada leads a talented bunch of eight players into Saturday's quarterfinals.

He hit another great series of 1804 over today's eight games in the top 24 session and how now finished the qualifying rounds with an average of 232.63, five pins more than second-placed Petter Hansen of Norway, last year's runner-up in Singapore.

Schmidt will now face Venezuelan Arturo Hernandez in the televised quarterfinals in a best of three game encounter. Hansen comes up against seventh seed Badr Al Sheikh of Saudi Arabia, the man who shot the tournament's fourth perfect game Friday afternoon.

Lucas Legnani of Argentina will test his skills against Israel's Or Aviram and the opening match will be between the two European stalwarts, Gery Verbruggen of Belgium and Sweden's Anders Ohman, two guys who have battled out the final match in world and European events.

Badr Al Sheikh had the best eight-game series on Friday, totalling 1875, which included his 300 game, fourth in the tournament so far. His three games from the fourth to the sixth included 27 strikes in a row and games of 268, 300 and 242.

Arturo Hernadez from Venezuela hit the strike at the crucial time to beat England's Steve Thornton by just 9 pins for the final spot in the top 8.

Story by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International and photos by Fong Min Yuan, Asian Bowling Digest.

18th November, Ljubljana: The top eight ladies confirmed their places for tomorrow's knockout quarterfinals stage of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, after the top 24 completed their 8-games round 2 Friday morning.

Another impressive display from Lynda Barnes of the United States saw her confirmed as number one seed for tomorrow's quarterfinals, ending her 32-game stint with an outstanding 1926 over Friday's eight games and totalling 7527 overall pinfall, just under 500 pins above Sweden's Helen Johnsson.

The focus was really on the fight for the lower qualifying places as the girls from Bahrain, Australia, Norway, Germany and the Netherlands all had chances of beating the cut. Eventually the qualifying pair were Ann Louise Haugen of Norway and Australia's Clair Johnston.

Nadia Ageel from Bahrain has the honor of being the first Arab lady ever to make the finals of the World Cup. "This feels great," she commented. "It will make a lot of difference to women bowlers in Bahrain and also encourage a lot more to take up the sport." Nadia is coached by England's Mario Joseph.

Runner-up Helen Johnsson of Sweden said: "I was not so technically good today, but I feel OK." Just 1695 over the eight games, but it was enough to hold second place.

Australia's petite Clair Johnson got into the last eight by the skin of her teeth, shooting a 236 to oust Patricia Schwarz of Germany for her place for showtime. Her folks back home in Adeliade will be pleased, even though she said: "It was a bit of a struggle," smiling with pleasure.

The top seed will be matched up against the eighth placed bowler, the second seed with the seventh placed bowler and so on when the knock out rounds are played Saturday.

Story by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International and photos by Fong Min Yuan, Asian Bowling Digest.

17th November, Ljubljana: Canada's Michael Schmidt's fourth squad series of 1332 and overall 24-game pinfall of 5640 topped the leader board for the first qualifying round of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup.

The 25-year-old university student has dominated all four squads and his 235 average far exceeds that of any other player in this year's talented field.

Now the youngster leads the 24 qualifiers into the second round, a further eight games, and then the leading eight will survive to fight out the finals, a series of best of three game matches with the top seed playing the eighth, second versus the seventh and so on. This format also applies in the women's division. Those matches will be played in a special arena on Saturday and Sunday.

The talented Petter Hansen of Norway, who was eager to get onto level terms with the Canadian managed a 1292 in the earlier squad to end up in second overall with 5521, 121 pins adrift the leader. Tournament's second 300 man, Anders Ohman of Sweden took third spot with 5368.

Marek Przezpolewski from Poland had a good run for a perfect game this evening but fell at the final hurdle. A stubborn 10-pin in the tenth frame robbed him of a 300 and he finished with a 277. He tried it again in the last game, this time failing to strike in the ninth frame, finishing with 268. Unfortunately, he didn't make the cut to the top 24 and ended his 2005 World Cup in 37th place.

One young man very pleased with himself is Tamas Szabo of Szentendre, Hungary, who shot the tournament's third 300 game this afternoon. For the bowling center proprietor, featuring two lanes with a restaurant and bar, this was a first-time perfect game. "I've reached the first eight strikes two or three times, but never hit the twelve," he told us. "I felt better than I thought I would up until the final ball of the frame, and then I trembled a bit."

Szabo has bowled quite well in a few tournaments in Hungary but never as well as he is playing here. "I am very happy to have reached this high a position," he said. "It would be marvellous if I got into the top eight."

The best performance of the evening came from Israel's Or Aviram who rolled a six-game set of 1471 and now has a comfortable seat in seventh place.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International and Fong Min Yuan, Asian Bowling Digest.

17th November, Ljubljana: High fives for Lynda Barnes with talented Team USA coach Jeri Edwards for a fantastic last qualifying block this morning and coming top of the field in the ladies division of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup.

Her 1317 over the final six of the 24 qualifying games gave her a 166 pin advantage going into the top 24 competition on Friday morning, a buffer that should give her a clear top seed position for the quarterfinals on Saturday.

"It was a good day in the office again," Barnes joked after the battle. "The lanes played a little tighter for me today, so I didn't bowl as well as I should have. But every day is a learning day. I was pleased to hear that Helen Johnsson bowled a 299, but hope she doesn't bowl a 300 against me.

Husband Chris, a PBA professional bowler, had to pull out of the USBC Masters yesterday with a back injury. "I was sorry to hear that Chris is injured," said Lynda. "The news gave me a lot of motivation as I wanted to give him something positive to think about."

Lynda was a professional bowler for just over two years in 1999-2000 but now prefers to compete in amateur events. She recently won three gold, one silver and a bronze medal in the American Zone Championships in Costa Rica.

And now she's a big fan of the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup as, "The people here are really happy to be here. Anyway, Chris makes the money and I get to bowl," she added.

Squad A leader, Helen Johnsson of Sweden ended the day in second while Fiona Banks of England claimed third spot. Day 2 leader, Wendy Chai of Malaysia dropped to fourth with Nadia Ageel Al-Awadhi of Bahrain a surprise fifth.

Unlucky to miss the cut were two Asian debutants, Carmen Tang of Hong Kong and Cherie Tan Shi Hua of Singapore by 6 and 9 pins in 25th and 26th positions respectively.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

17th November, Ljubljana: Helen Johnsson of Helsingborg, Sweden, almost shot a perfect game in the fourth and final block of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup to lead Squad A at Gladiator Bowl on Thursday morning.

The 29-year-old thrilled the crowded concourse and fellow competitors on the early squad this morning with eleven strikes in a row during her bid for the tournament's first ladies' perfect game. Unfortunately, that vital twelfth strike was not to be, a stubborn 10-pin ruining her chance.

"I thought the shot was OK," she said afterwards, "although it was just a little more outside and had a shade more hook."

Johnsson bowled a six-game series of 1414 in this final qualifying squad for a 24-game total of 5435 and now awaits the results of the second shift to see her placing going into the last 24 group on Friday morning.

Australia's Clair Johnston, who was eighth overnight, finished second in this squad with 1256 scoreline and 4965 total ahead of Piritta Kantola of Finland third on a total of 4927. Current cut off score stands at 4113 held by UAE's Rahma Mubarak Al Sharqi.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

16th November, Ljubljana: Canada's Michael Schmidt, from Winnipeg, has total control over the men's division of this 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup from the opening day, leading each of the three squads and bowling superbly at Gladiator Bowl on Wednesday evening.

Tonight, in the 13th to 18th games of the third squad, Schmidt consolidated his position with yet another sterling performance and holds a 79 pin buffer over second-placed Petter Hansen of Norway, the runner-up from last year in Singapore.

"Things are going pretty good," said Schmidt after the squad. "I have a pretty good combination and all is working well. I am well focused, trying not to think of anything but my game plan and a good pinfall for the top 24 round on Friday."

Team Canada coach, Sandy Lowe said:, "The whole idea is to be repetitive and keep the emotions and mental game in check and on an even keel."

Petter Hansen of Norway, the man who had us all on the edge of our seats in last year's final match in Singapore and was eventually the runner-up in the 2004 event, provided yet another exciting dispaly of bowling in the earlier ssquad, shooting 1429 to bring his overall pinfall up to 4229 and a second place slot behind Michael Schmidt.

Hansen thrilled the crowds with an impressive ten strikes in his final game, but as befell Ohman of Sweden yesterday, a stubborn 4-pin spoilt his chance of the event's third perfect game.

"I was very happy with my form today," he told us. "I have a new ball that is doing very well. I relaxed too much and had a lower game in the fifth. I got angry with myself in the last game and strung those strikes. I should have moved a little left with that last shot as the three players on my pair have all been shooting really deep."

Last year, in Singapore, Hansen lost the 2004 title when all he needed was a spare or strike in the tenth frame. He left the 2-8-10 split and the title went to Kai Virtanen of Finland. "People remind me of that, but I have let it rest," Hansen said. "It is stupid to dwell on something like that. My target now is to stay in the top eight, where doesn't really matter. I just want to play well and feel good."

Mr 300, Anders Ohman of Sweden, who bowled the second perfecto this year, hit just 1280 today and has dropped to sixth place.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

16th November, Ljubljana: Tournament favorite Lynda Barnes, from Texas, USA had a literal strikefest Wednesday morning to dominate the ladies' standings of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup at the end of the third block.

Barnes opened with a 279 and followed with games of 259, 246, 267, 247 and 233 for a World Cup ladies' record of 1531 and open up a 235 pin buffer over second-placed Wendy Chai of Malaysia, the overnight leader.

"I'm not a numbers person," commented Lynda, "but this could possibly be the highest six-game set I've ever bowled in my life." Lynda's series opened this morning with two spares and ten strikes for a 279. Game two opened with another six in a row, giving her a run of 16. A couple of spares brought a 259.

"If we had bowled just two more frames during the practice session opened with a 300," joked Lynda's famous coach Jeri Edwards, "perhaps Lynda would have bowled a perfect game. It really was a treasure to see how Lynda bowled today."

Any specific changes to style or equipment? "No, she used the same ball as yesterday," responded Jeri. "The lanes were similar to last night and we matched up things to get what the lanes required."

Lynda's husband, Chris, is currently competing in the USBC Masters in Milwaukee, USA. "I'm experimenting with telepathic transference to send him some strikes," Lynda joked. "We both need to get on the same wavelength."

Overnight leader, Wendy Chai's 1283 in this squad was the lowest in the three blocks she has completed but was still able to finish second. Squad A will take onto the lanes shortly while the men will start their third block later in the day.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

15th November, Ljubljana: Wendy Chai of Malaysia bowled superbly once again despite strong challenges from Lynda Barnes of the United States and England's Fiona Banks to take the lead in the ladies division of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Tuesday evening.

Chai, who was trailing first block leader, Helen Johnsson of Sweden, scored 1443 in her second six-games block for a total of 2766 to lead Barnes and Johnsson by 13 and 62 pins respectively.

"There was much more room to make a mistake on the lanes today," commented Chai. "Plus that I felt very comfortable and relaxed. Yesterday was the first day and I was feeling the pressure. I used the same balls today with about the same speed and didn't have to change my line very much. My coach, Chris Batson, just made a few minor adjustments to my game.

"I was really trying hard to make a 300 in the last game but I bowled just a little too fast in the eighth frame and left the 6-pin. The lady from the Isle of Man asked me to give her a perfect game and I told her I was trying as hard as I could. The only sanctioned one I've achieved was way back in 1997 - a long time."

Barnes and Banks also bowled a storm, both with high games of 269, so once again it is Asia, the Americas and Europe sharing the honors. The ladies will contest their third block of six games on Wednesday morning while the men will be in the afternoon.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

15th November, Ljubljana: Last year's Bowling World Cup runner-up Petter Hansen of Norway came closest to Michael Schmidt's leading score of 2872 over the first 12 games of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, 71 pins adrift in second place.

But the star of the day was Anders Ohman of Sweden. A bit down in the dumps after his lowly 1128 yesterday, he came back with a bang today, shooting the tournament's second 300 game and following that with a 289. His 1536 over today's six games has now brought him up into fourth place.

Having lost his main luggage and having no change of clothes for three days, Ohman was relieved to have his bag arrive in the nick of time yesterday. When he took to the lanes today, he said: "I changed everything today except my bowling shoes and I'm pleased to get back into contention." Those changes led to his 19th career perfect game. It is two years since the last, bowled in the World Championships in Malaysia.

Ohman has competed in two previous World Cups and has never made the top eight, a fault he sincerely means to correct this year.

When those head-to-head matches start at the weekend his predictions are, "First me, then Hansen from Norway. I don't know who the rest will be but I do see a strong challenge from Schmidt. But for now I will watch my compatriot Helen Johnsson bowl and I hope to see her at the top of the table."

The ladies will take to the lanes for their second block of six games with Squad B first followed by Squad A later in the evening.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

15th November, Ljubljana: Michael Schmidt of Canada celebrated with his father, Rick after consolidating his place at the top of the men's leaderboard in 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup with a better score Tuesday morning than he posted on Monday.

Another good start set him well on the road to the top and he now has a 103 pin buffer over second-placed Gery Verbruggen of Belgium, for many years the top ranked bowler in Europe. Schmidt was as cool, calm and collected as yesterday after his 1459 today. "I'm happy for now," he told us, "but there's still another squad today. This is world bowling and someone can come along and shoot a good 1500."

Commenting on his scoring plan and strategy for today, Schmidt added: "I started off differently today but after the second game I moved much deeper on the lane using the same ball I started with yesterday.

"I think the lanes were snappier today, giving a little more back-end, and that suited me well. I didn't really watch what the other players were doing as I need to focus and concentrate on my execution, I really want to do the best that I can, both for myself and for Canada."

There's now a long break for Squad A as they don't come back to the lanes until Wednesday evening. "I'll try to get out on a tour," said Schmidt. "And, of course, there's always the Team Canada cribbage match!"

Second in the table came Belgium's Gery Verbruggen, who bowled much better today giving him a 12-game total of 2769. Third spot went to Russian, Nikita Koshelev with 2654.

Asia's best performer, taking over from Singapore's Dominic Lim Zhong was ABF Tour Singapore leg champion, Tyrone Ongpauco in fourth with 2637. Now it is the turn for Squad B to take to the lanes and the ladies will play this evening.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

14th November, Ljubljana: Wendy Chai of Malaysia, put up a strong challenge to lead squad B of the ladies' first block of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup to finish second to Helen Johnsson of Sweden Monday evening.

But for the only game less than 200 in her six-game set, it would have been the name of Wendy Chai of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at the top of the leader board at the completion of the first set of qualifying games for the ladies. Chai chalked up 203, 223, 268, 220, 218 and 191 for a 1323 total.

Chai was in the enviable position of being in ninth place with one game to bowl as the end of the squad neared, but lost her line in the final game and finished in second place, just 18 pins off first place.

The 28-year-old credit control officer is having a great year, being the runner-up in the World Ranking Masters earlier in the year, second in the ABF Tour in Hong Kong and clinching the Sinai Open title. This is her second appearance in the World Cup, having placed fifth in Riga, Latvia in 2002.

"I'm not too disappointed about not beating Johnsson's score," she said after the squad. "I think I bowled well and my coach Chris Batson helped a lot with very fast changes of equipment and lines."

With the combined scores from both squads, Lynda Barnes of USA did well to finish third with a score of 1300, making up the top 3 and surpassing the 1300-mark in their six-games first block.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

14th November, Ljubljana: Helen Johnsson of Helsingborg, Sweden, hit 1341 to set the target in the opening ladies' squad of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Monday afternoon with a 70 pin buffer with Squad B to play.

The 29-year-old economics secretary is the top ranked bowler in Sweden and as such gets to represent Sweden in the World Cup, a position she enjoyed last year in Singapore, where she lost in the first match of the quarterfinals.

Her ranking points came from competition in eleven major Swedish tournaments. Swedish coach Magnus Johnson, the WBW Outstanding International Coach awardee this year, said: "Johnsson has been absolutely outstanding over the past two years."

Johnsson was third in the European Individual Championships in Germany this year and has been on the Swedish national team since 2000. She also has a silver medal from the World Championships in Malaysia two years ago.

Asked about her performance on the Gladiator lanes this afternoon, she commented: "I feel very confident. You have to stay really focused here, play a simple game without a lot of hook. I used the same ball all through the six games but moved from the outside to the 10-11 boards as the games progressed. I finished in the 5-8 bracket in Singapore and am determined to do better than that this time."

Bigi Manico of Switzerland, finished second with a score of 1273 followed by Aida Granillo of El Salvador in third spot with 1235.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

14th November, Ljubljana: Michael Schmidt of Winnipeg, Canada, a 25-year-old university student took over pole position from pace-setter, Petter Hansen of Norway at the end of the Men's first day of competition in the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup.

The first day of competition is now over for the men and all have completed their first six of the initial 24 qualifying games. The man now in the spotlight is Michael Schmidt, a 25-year-old student at university taking business studies. The first man to break the 1400 barrier over six games in this year's event has won TSM and CBC events but is not currently a member of the Canadian national squad.

"He certainly has the potential," commented Canadain coach Sandy Lowe. "He's young and has plenty of time to make it." Schmidt had no preconception of staking his name at the top of the leader board Monday afternoon.

"I was just looking at staying in the top twenty," he remarked. Although he started off his six-game run with 236 and 261, he changed his bowling ball

going into the third game. "I felt I needed something more aggressive as I wanted to bowl a much deeper line."

Asked how he was enjoying his first international trip outside North America, Schmidt said: "Slovenia is just fantastic. Despite the dull weather, we've taken over a hundred pictures in just two days.

"I'm just amazed at the fantastic hospitality and I can't believe the number of people who speak English here. I'm looking forward to getting out and about on some tours." The way he's bowling right now, he's not going to have much time for those!

Meanwhile, the honor of shooting the 41st World Cup's first 300 fell to Steve Thornton of England in the second squad. After a slow start, Thornton saved his epic perfecto until the final game.

"I felt really good through the game and maybe had a little luck in the ninth frame when the 9-pin was the last to fall," he commented. "I had split my finger in the fourth game and it was bleeding badly but that settled down by the sixth. "The way these lanes are playing right now the ball has to come off the hand really cleanly.

I'm really happy to be seventh right now as I didn't think I would get into the top eight, but that 300 game came to my rescue. "I used to put a lot of pressure on myself, but I think I am more mature now so my goals are more mental," he added.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

14th November, Ljubljana: Petter Hansen, 37, from the outskirts of Norway's capital Oslo, dominated the opening squad of the 41st QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup at the Gladiator Bowl in Ljubljana, Slovenia Monday morning.

Runner-up in Singapore in last year's excellent World Cup, Hansen is very determined to lift the trophy when the dust of battle settles on Sunday evening. There was no guarantee for Hansen to represent Norway again this year, he had to finish in high positions in five out of seven qualifying tournaments and found himself in the unfortunate position of having to win the last two. He managed to do just that and is here to do his best.

Opening his account today on the lanes of the superb Gladiator Bowl with a 269, he set a hot pace for the first of the two men's squads to follow with a 6-game total of 1356.

"I started off well but my scores were lower when the lanes were drier. The middle disappeared," he commented. "I changed to my weakest ball for the last three games and got some good scores."

Hansen was in the unfortunate position in last year's final of leaving the 2-8-10 split in the final frame when he just needed a spare to clinch the title. "That's history now," he added. "Now I'm concentrating on getting into the last eight at the weekend."

World Cup debutant, Nayef Eqab Abdulla Jaber of UAE did well to finish second, just 7 pins adrift on 1349 while another rookie, Massimo Pirozzi of Italy took third spot with 1301.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.

13th November, Ljubljana: The 41st edition of the prestigious QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup got underway on Sunday evening with a memorable opening ceremony on the concourse and lanes of the Gladiator Bowling Center in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The Mayor of Ljubljana performed the ceremony of cutting the ribbon and declaring the tournament open. This delightful part of the ceremony was preceded by speeches from the managing director of the Vodfaone Arena complex, Heikki Sarso, President of WTBA and John Walker, chief executive of the recently merged QubicaAMF.

The traditional parade of competitors embraced the contingents representing 86 nations and oaths of sportsmanship and honesty were taken by Barbara Brezic on behalf of the players and Milan Lukic for the officials. Both are Slovenians.

The evening came to a pleasant conclusion with the Welcome Reception held on the main concourse of the Gladiator Bowling Center.

The participants had their bowling balls registered and an official practice were also held earlier in the day. Action gets underway at 08:00 local time on Monday morning when the first of the two men's squads takes to the lanes for their first six of 24 qualifying games.

QubicaAMF Worldwide Inc, the founder and principal sponsor of the Bowling World Cup, is the world’s largest owner and operator of bowling centres. AMF is also a leader in the manufacturing and marketing of bowling and billiards products. More information about a AMF is available at www.amf.com.

Story and photos by Keith Hale, Bowlers' Journal International.