23rd January, Abu Dhabi: Kuwait and Korea ended the the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships by sharing the glory on final day after Khaled Al-Dubyyan and Hwang Sun-Ok emerged as Men's and Women's Masters champions.

Khaled Al-Dubyyan, who had earlier topped the Masters finals second block over the short oil pattern, went into the stepladder finals and chose the medium oil pattern in the title match against challenger, Choi Bok-Eum of Korea.

Khaled took the first game, 234-191 as the Choi struggled to find his rythmn. The Korean continued to bowl his best as the Kuwaiti romped home to a convincing victory in the second match, 265-217 and the gold medal with 499-408 two-games total.

"Khaled wasn't playing too well in the medium oil conditions so he made a ball change and bowl a little more to the right and it paid off," said Kuwait head coach, Andrew Frawley. "I think he gained more confidence after he shot a few big games to make the stepladder finals as top seed.

"Our expectations in the beginning was to be in contention for a medal. Winning the silver in the doubles and then the bronze in the team was really amazing. And now to cap it off with the Masters gold is simply amazing."

Choi, who crawled his way back from sixth to second in the second block, settled for the silver medal despite beating team-mate, Jang Dong-Chul, 48-40 in the nine and tenth frame tie breaker after locking at 179 in the all-Korean first match.

Jang took home the bronze medal while Ryan Lalisang of Indonesia, who led the first block with a 252 pin margin threw it all away after missing the stepladder finals cut to end up in a disappointing fourth.

Meanwhile, top seed Haruka Matsuda in her first career stepladder finals, lost to third seed Hwang Sun-Ok of Korea, 430-505 in the women's title match. Hwang cruised to a 268-235 win in the first game and took the second game, 237-195 to win her third gold medal of the championship.

"I knew I've a good chance of making the stepladder finals because me and my team-mates are stronger in the short oil," said Hwang, who was the toast of Korea by winning five gold medal at the Guangzhou Asian Games in November.

"And I'm happy to reach the stepladder and win my third gold. I want to thank my coaches especially Kang Do-In and my team-mates to win seven gold medals altogether. I also want to thank Korean Bowling Congress for the opportunity to compete here."

Hwang had earlier defeated team-mate and No. 2 seed, Son Yun-Hee, 213-201 in the another first all-Korean stepladder match. Haruka settled for the silver while Son took home the bronze. Jeon Eun-Hee of Korea, who was third in the first block, missed the cut after finishing fourth in the earlier second block finals while overnight leader, Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia ended in fifth.

As expected, Korea again went home as overall champion with a medal haul of 7-4-2. The women contributing four gold medals and the men three. Malaysia finished second with 1 gold and 3 silver medals.

Khaled's victory in the Masters put Kuwait third with 1 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze. Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia were the three other countries to have won a gold medal each while host nation, UAE won 2 silver and 1 bronze. The next edition of the Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship will be staged in Hong Kong in 2012. Click Men's Masters Champ and Women's Masters Champ for video interviews.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

22nd January, Abu Dhabi: Reigning ABF Tour TOC champions, Ryan Lalisang and Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia conquered the lanes at Khalifa Bowling Center by topping the Men's and Women's Masters first block finals of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships on Saturday.

Ryan Lalisang scorched the lanes with a sizzling 260 to beat opponent, Yannaphon Larpapharat of Thailand in his opening game of the round-robin matchplay finals to take the lead with Asian Games gold medalist, Choi Bok-Eum in second.

Lalisang won his next three matches with 245, 233 and 259 to take a comfortable lead of 93 pins midway through the first block over Kuwait's Khaled Al-Dubyyan in second and Team gold medalist, Jang Dong-Chul third.

The Indonesian then went on a strikefest reeling in back-to-back 278s and opened up a massive gap of 252 over his nearest rival. Although the leader lost the seventh match with 178, he came back with 221 to end the block 2022.

"I really didn't make a lot of changes except a line change and bowling straighter," said the 29-year-old Lalisang, who won seven of the eight matches. "I just had one poor game because I didn't make the adjustment quick enough.

"I'm comfortable on the short oil so I feel good. My coach is making sure I use the right ball so I'm confident about my chances."

Khaled Al-Dubyyan finished stronger than Jang to snatch second spot with 1817 while the Korean settled for third position with 1794. Two bronze medalist, Yousif Falah and Singles gold medalist, Cho Young-Seon ended in a close fourth and fifth positions.

Meanwhile, Sharon Limansantoso gave their coach, Bill Hall and team-mates plenty to cheer after she also led the women's division with 1852 by winning seven matches and averaging an impressive 222.75.

Haruka Matsuda of Japan, who was tussling for the lead with the Indonesian for most of the block, took second spot despite rolling a big game of 268 in her final match. The silver medalist in the Team event won five matches for a total of 1843.

"Winning the bronze medal in the Doubles event was a good start and helped to settle me down nicely," said Sharon Limansantoso. "It's useful to finish in the lead knowing that the Koreans will be strong in the short oil tomorrow.

"But if they can bowl well in the short oil, so can I. I'm looking forward to the challenge." Her team-mate, Putty Armein managed only a 11th place finish and will need to step up for a short at finishing in the podium.

The men and women will resume with the second block of seven matches and a position round to determine the top 3 men and top 3 women who will advance to the stepladder finals. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

21st January, Abu Dhabi: The Koreans put up a dominating performance by capturing the Women's and Men's Team of 5 gold medals at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships on Friday evening.

Japan, who had led the first block over the short oil pattern in the morning by 25 pins over Korea, was immediately overtaken by Korea's Hwang Sun-Ok, Hong Su-Yeon, Jeon Eun-Hee, Son Yun-Hee and Gye Min-Young at the start of the second block over medium oil pattern.

By the fifth game, the Koreans had built up a gap of 307 pins and ended the block of the 5-player team event with 6427 to win their second gold medal.

Japan's Misaki Mukotani, Yukari Homma, Rina Asada, Haruka Matsuda and Kanako Ishimine finished strongly in their final game to snatch the silver medal with 6055.

Daphne Tan, Tan Yan Ling, Fok Ka Wai, Kristel Oh and Bernice Lim of Singapore was trailing Korea in the fourth and fifth games, were overhauled by Japan in the final game to settle for the bronze medal with 6053.

Malaysia, who was in a medal contention, missed the podium to end up in fourth after being edged by Japan by 18 pins.

Asian Games five gold medalist, Hwang Sun-Ok won her second gold medal and Korea's fifth by topping the Women's All Events standings with 5287 ahead team-mate, Son Yun-Hee who took the silver with 5226.

"Before I came here, I had set my own target of 3 gold medals," said Hwang Sun-Ok. "Winning 2 gold medal helped to make up for the disappointment in not winning a medal in the Doubles and Trios event.

"I have 4 team-mates in the Masters finals and I've to work harder if I want to reach my target. My team-mates and other finalists are equally good so it'll be a tough fight."

Daphne Tan of Singapore clinched the bronze medal with 5218 while Malaysia's Jacqueline Sijore missed the podium finishing fourth with 5180. Korea has five bowlers in the top 16 for the Masters finals.

Singapore has three women, Japan two, Malaysia two, Indonesia two and Hong Kong and Australia one each.

In the men's division, Korean men won their sixth gold medal of the championships thus far when Choi Bok-Eum, Choi Kong-Kyu, Suh Sang-Cheon (alternating with Hong Hae-Sol), Cho Young-Seong and Jang Dong-Chul triumped the in the 5-player team event with 6476.

Host nation, UAE was trailing the Koreans by 60 pins going into the final game and had looked good to snatch victory but was extremely unlucky to end the second block just 27 pins behind the Koreans.

Sayed Al-Hashemi, Naif Oqab, Shaker Al-Hassan, Mahmood Al-Attar and Mohd Khalifa Al-Qubaisi settled for the silver medal with 6449, their second silver of the championships.

Kuwait's Basil Al-Anzi, Fahad Al-Rageeb (alternated by Fadhel Al-Mousawi), Mohammad Al-Zaidan, Mohammed Al-Regeebah and Khaled Al-Dubyyan snatched the bronze medal from Hong Kong in the final game with 6251.

Hong Kong missed the podium to finish in fourth position with 6224, 27 pins away. But Wu Siu Hong gave Hong Kong their first gold medal after topping the Men's All Events with 5358.

"I did well in the Singles and Doubles event and managed to keep my consistency in the Trios and Team event to win the gold," said the 2006 Asian Championship Masters gold medalist, Wu Siu Hong. "This victory would give me more confidence to do well in the Masters."

"It's extremely difficult to be able to bowl consistently throughout the 24 games and Wu's focus and concentration paid off," said head coach, Purvis Granger. "He had worked hard after a disappointing Asian Games and I'm really glad for him."

Singles gold medalist, Cho Yong-Seon settled for the silver medal with 5337 while Singles bronze medalist, Yousif Falah claimed his second bronze after finishing third with 5316.

Korea is running away in the overall medal tally after five events with their men and women picking up 3 gold medals each. They have a medal haul of 6 gold and 3 silver medals.

Malaysia is second with 1 gold and 3 silver medals. Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia are the other three countries to win a gold medal each.

The top 16 men and top 16 women in the All Events standings qualified for the Round-robin Masters finals over two blocks on Saturday (2.00pm local time) and Sunday (9.00am). The top 3 men and top 3 women will advance to the stepladder finals. Click Men's All Events and Women's All Events for video interviews.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

20th January, Abu Dhabi: Muhd Nur Aiman, Syafiq Ridhwan and Aaron Kong led throughout the second block of the Men's Trios event to win Malaysia's first gold medal at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships with host UAE taking the silver and bronze medals.

Muhd Nur Aiman, Syafiq Ridhwan and Aaron Kong had a respectable 607 opening game at the start of the second block over the short oil pattern yet were able to remain in the lead albeit having their lead reduced from 84 pins to 68 pins.

Host nation's Sayed Al-Hashemi, Mahmood Al-Attar and Mohd Khalifa Al-Qubaisi continued to trail the leader after posting 623 followed by the second Korean trio of Choi Yong-Kyu, Cho Young-Seon and Jang Dong-Chul third.

The Malaysians returned with consistent games of 644 and 643 to end the block with 3898 to win their first gold medal of the competition. Aiman posted 1245, Syafiq 1346 and anchorman, Aaron the highest 6-games series of 1398.

The first Emirati trio could do nothing to overhaul the Malaysians and had to settle for the silver medal with 3914, 75 pins adrift. But the Koreans were denied a podium when the second Emirati trio stormed home to snatch the bronze medal with 3864.

"Winning the gold here has certainly erased my disappointment when I won the silver at the World Championship and another at the Guangzhou Asian Games," said Muhd Nur Aiman. Syafiq added that he is pleased with the victory especially making his debut here.

"There wasn't really much pressure bowling as an achorman when we had a fairly comfortable margin before the second block," said Aaron Kong, who was also anchored the Trios in winning the gold at the 2006 Doha Asiam Games.

"My team-mates also contributed to this win and their consistency also helped me and took some pressure off. This is our first gold and we hope we can carry this momentum into the team event."

Meanwhile, Asian Games triple gold medalist, Choi Bok-Eum shot his second perfect game of the tournament in the final game of this block but his team could only finish fifth with 3774 behind another Korean trio fourth with 3798. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

20th January, Abu Dhabi: First block leader of Son Yun-Hee, Shin Bo-Hyun and Gye Min-Young lived up to their billing as Asia's powerhouse by sealing their victory in the Women's Trios event of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships.

The second Korean trio, who led the first block with a comfortable margin of 63 pins over Singapore yesterday, never looked threaten as they resumed their fourth game with 617 and yet was able to stretch their lead to 82 pins.

Japan, who was third yesterday, moved up into second spot with Singapore slipping down to fourth. Malaysia's first trio of Zatil Iman, Siti Shazwani and Jacqueline Sijore making their bid and was fourth.

Korea's lead was reduced to 57 after they only managed 593 in the fifth game as the Malaysians fired 665 to make their challenge. Japan stayed close to the leaders while Singapore fell out of contention.

Malaysia had a chance of snatching the gold but the Koreans displayed their prowess to end the block with 3851 to seal victory and clinch their first gold medal and Korea's third. Malaysia settled for the silver with 3821.

"It was not easy for me today but I'm glad my more experienced team-mates helped me," said the 21-year-old debutant, Shin Bo-Hyun, who won the Masters gold medal at the World Youth Championship in Helsinki last year.

"At the start of today's block, we were a little uncomfortable but after our coach told us to make some adjustments, it was much better," said Son Yun-Hee, who carried the team with the highest 6-game score of 1383.

"This is the first time I'm the anchorwomen for this event and it was slightly uncomfortable and full of pressure," said Gye Min-Young. "But I'm glad we pulled through to win our first gold."

Japan's Misaki Mukotani, Haraku Matsuda and Kanako Ishimine won their first medal at the championship by taking home the bronze medal with 3759 while Indonesia and the second trio of Malaysia missed the podium tieing fourth with 3659. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

19th January, Abu Dhabi: Malaysia's trio of Muhd Nur Aiman, Syafiq Ridhwan and Aaron Kong set course for their first gold of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships after topping the Men's Trios Block 1 on Wednesday evening.

The Malaysian trio opened accounts with a sizzling 703 in the first game but only managed a slender lead of 1 pin over Australia, who shot 702 with the second Korean trio third on 882.

Muhd Nur Aiman, Syafiq and Aaron step up a notch with another scintilating 713 to open up a gap of 81 pins over Kuwait's Basil Al-Anzi, Mohammed Al-Rageebah and Khaled Al-Dubyyan in second as Australia and Korea dropped off their pace.

The leader ended the first block over the medium oil pattern with 680 for a total of 2095 to remain in the lead. Aiman downed 670 and Aaron 698 while Syafiq posted the highest 3-game series of 727.

"I'm quite happy with the performance of my team because they were quick enough to make the necsesary adjustments in this block," said chief coach, Holloway Cheah. "They picked up all their spares which is crucial at this level.

"They are much stronger in the short oil for the second block and it's good to build up a decent gap before the next block."

Host nation's Sayed Al-Hashemi, Mahmood Al-Attar and Mohd Khalifa Al-Qubaisi stormed home with two superb games of 674 and 695 to edge Kuwait by 36 pins for second spot on 2011. Kuwait took third spot with 1965.

Favourite, Korea bounced back from a disasterous second game to take up fourth position with 1934 while Qatar rounded up the top 5 with 1933.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

19th January, Abu Dhabi: After failing to win a gold medal in two events, the Korean women signalled their return at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships by leading the Women's Trios first block on Wednesday at Khalifa Bowling Centre.

The Korean women got off to a great start when the first trio of Hwang Sun-Ok, Jeon Eun-Hee and Hong Su-Yeon took the lead with a splendid 667 in their opening game, 8 pins ahead of the second trio of Son Yun-Hee, Shin Bo-Hyun and Gye Min-Young in second.

But they must have been surprise to see Novie Phang, Sharon Limansantoso and Putty Armein taking over the running after the Indonesian trio shot 711 in the second game to lead the second Korean trio by 1 pin.

Despite posting a respectable 609, Indonesia slipped down to fourth after Son, Shin and Gye rolled 704 in their third game to end the first block in the lead of 1982.

Doubles gold medal winning duo of Daphne Tan and Bernice Lim teamed up with Tan Yan Ling to snatch second spot with 1919, 63 pins adrift while Japan's Misaki Mukotani, Haruka Matsuda and Kanako Ishimine finished third with 1894.

The Korean first trio, who set the early pace, fell down to seventh behind two Malaysia trios in fifth and sixth positions. The women will resume with their second block tomorrow over the short oil pattern.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

18th January, Abu Dhabi: Kuwait's Basil Al-Anzi and Khaled Al-Dubyyan topped the Men's Doubles second squad to win the silver medal at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship as Squad A leader, Korea clinched their second gold.

Japan's Nobohito Fujii and Tomokatsu Yamashita grabbed a slender 1 pin lead over Qatar's Fahad Al Emadi and Mubarak Al-Muraikhi at the start of the second squad.

Kuwait's Basil Al-Anzi and Khaled Al-Dubyyan immediately took over the running after two superb games of 469 and 500 with the third Hong Kong pair of Mak Cheuk Yin and Wu Siu Hong trailing in second.

Another respectable 436 allowed the Kuwaiti to open up a gap of 84 pins over Hong Kong at the halfway mark with Singles gold medalist, Cho Young-Seon and Jang Dong-Chul of Korea stayed close to the leaders.

Korea closed the gap to just 9 pins after the leading pair could only manage 358 in the fourth game leaving the Kuwaitis needing 919 or more to overhaul Squad A leader for the gold.

Basil and Khaled recovered to fire 465 which meant they would only require 454 or more in their six and final game to snatch the gold. Luck was not on their side as they ended with 444 and fell short by 10 pins after a total of 2672.

Debutant, Yeri Ramadona and Ryan Lalisang had earlier finished second with 2638 to Korea's Choi Kng-Kyu and Hang Hae-Sol in Squad A. But the Indonesian pair was overhauled by Kuwait's Basil Al-Azni and Khaled Al-Dubyyan in Squad B to take home the bronze medal.

Choi and Hang's 2682 was good enough to earn Korea their second gold medal of the championship.

"I only won a bronze medal in the team event at the last championship in Hong Kong, so I'm happy to win my first gold here," said the 2009 AMF World Cup champion, Choi Kong-Kyu who also won a gold medal in the Team events at the recent Guangzhou Asian Games.

"I could have done better and if we had lost the gold to Kuwait, it was obviously down to me," said the slightly relieved 23-year-old Asian Games Team gold medalist, Hang Hae-Sol.

"Fortunately, they didn't overtake us so we were indeed glad to win the gold medal. And because I didn't do very well, I'm now more determine to do better in the next three events.

Cho and Jang's second position in the second squad only put them sixth after the scores were combined. Indonesia's Ryan Lalisang and Yeri Ramadona slipped one spot down to third to take home the bronze medal. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

18th January, Abu Dhabi: Korean men outshone their more illustrious female counterpart as Choi Kong-Kyu and Hong Hae-Sol surged into a comfortable lead of the Men's Doubles Squad A at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships.

Shogo Wada and Shusako Asato of Japan, took an early lead with their superb 503 opener but fell by the wayside as Thailand's Phumin Klanbda and Yannaphon Larpapharat took a suprise lead after two games.

The Thais were soon overhauled by Korea's second combination of Hong Hae-Sol and Choi Kong-Kyu after the duo shot two superb games of 479 and 490 to open up a gap of 92 pins after the fourth game.

The Thais were able to reduce that gap down to 41 pins after the fifth but a disappointing final game of 378 saw them ending the block in fourth with 2591 while the Korean pair finished the squad in the lead with 2682.

Indonesia's Ryan Lalisang and Yeri Ramadona stormed home in the second half to snatch second spot with 2638, 44 pins adrift while early leader bounced back to take up third spot with 2611.

Hussain Al-Suwaidi and Shaker Al-Hassan were host nation's best finisher taking up fifth spot with 2550. Squad B will take to the lanes after lane maintenance and the combined scores will determine the winner.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

18th January, Abu Dhabi: Daphne Tan and Bernice Lim delivered Singapore's first gold medal of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship after the duo triumphed in the Women's Doubles event at the Khalifa Bowling Centre on Tuesday.

Malaysia got off to a fabulous start with 481 after Jacqueline Sijore shot 269 and Siti Safiyah Amrah 212 in their opening game to lead Singapore's Daphne Tan and Bernice Lim by 9 pins.

But Daphne and Bernice posted 440 in their second game which saw the Singapore pair taking over the lead with Indonesia's Sharon Limansantoso and Putty Armein trailing in second as the Malaysian slipped down to third.

Consistent games of 459, 436 and another high game of 478 gave the Singaporean pair a comfortable lead of 128 over the recovering Malaysian pair going int the final game.

Despite managing only 418, Singapore's total of 2703 allowed them to seal the victory and to win SIngapore's first gold medal of the championship.

"We started off well especially with my opening game of 267 and by the fourth game when I shot another high game of 279, we felt less pressure," said Daphne, who total the highest 6-game series of 1418.

"Daphne carried the team throughout with her superb form and I just made sure that I stayed as close to her score as possible," said Bernice, who won the team gold at the 2009 Asian Youth Championship in Kuwait.

"The girls did exceptionally well today and they demonstrated their "Can Do" attitude throughout," said the delighted coach, Wiliam Woo.

Jacqueline Sijore and Siti Saifyah Amirah bounced back to win the silver medal with 2638 thanks to a superb last game of 481. Sharon Limansantoso and Putty Armein of Indonesia snatch the bronze medal with 2586, thanks also to a superb final game of 467.

The pair of Singles silver medalist, Hwang Sun-Ok and Son Yun-Hee, who were third before the final game, lost to the Indonesian pair by three pins to miss the podium and ended in fourth.

Two other Korean favourites, Shin Ho Hyun-Hong Su Yeon and Jeon Eun Hee-Gye Min Young finished fifth and six positions underlinng the fact that for the first time, Korea has finished outside of the medal positions in the doubles event. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

17th January, Abu Dhabi: Squad A leader, Cho Young-Seon won the Men's Singles gold medal of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship as Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong retained second spot to win the silver and Squad B leader, Yousif Falah of Bahrain clinched the bronze.

World Championship Doubles silver medalist, Muhd Nur Aiman of Malaysia took an early lead with 248 ahead of Bahrain's Yousif Falah in second, just one pin behind as Squad B took to the lanes for their Singles.

The Malaysian could not hold the lead after the second game despite firing 223 when Yousif posted a higher second game to take over the running.

Asian Games triple gold medalist, Choi Bok-Eum blitzed the lanes by registering the championship's first 300 in the third game but had to trail the Bahraini by 15 pins.

Another superb game in the fourth gave Yousif some breathing space after he was able to open up a gap of 46 pins over the Korean but it still left Yousif needing 467 from the final two games to overhaul Squad A leader, Cho Young-Seon of Korea.

A poor 180 in the fifth game from Yousif put him in the back foot and needing 287 in his last game to overtake the Korean. He could at best, hope for 240 or more to snatch the silver from second-placed, Wu Siu Hong of Hong Kong.

He looked set to achieve it when he struck in the tenth frame and another in the eleventh frame would give him 246 but succumbed to a stubborn pin 10 and ending with 236 and falling short by 4 pins for the silver.

The 6-game total of 1382 did earn the Bahriani a bronze medal overhauling Jang Dong-Chul's 1363 from Squad A. Japan's Shusako Asato stormed home with 267 to finished second to Yousif but missed the podium by 19 pins.

"I'm very happy to have been able to win my first individual gold medal after being with the national team," said Cho in his native language and translated by Thai coach, Kim Eu Young.

"I've to thank Korean Bowling Congress for having faith in me and my coach, Mr Kang. Now I'll work harder to help my team-mates to win more gold in the other events."

Perfect gamer, Choi Bok-Eum slipped down to eighth overall while team-mate, Jang Dong-Chul ended in fifth spot. Competition will resume tomorrow with the Doubles event over medium oil pattern. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

17th January, Abu Dhabi: Asian Games gold medalist, Cho Young-Seon topped the first squad of the Men's Singles event of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship with a comfortable margin over Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong in second and team-mate, Jand Dong-Chul third.

Malaysia's Aaron Kong opened account with a blistering pace of 267 to lead Australia's Stephen Cowland in second. Korea's Cho Young-Seon matched Kong's game with a 268 in the second to move up to second and narrowing the gap to just 3 pins.

With another sizzling 254 from Cho, the Korean opened up a gap of 45 pins ahead of the Malaysian at the halfway mark while another Korean, Jang Dong-Chul made his bid to take up third.

A poor 174 from Kong saw the pace-setter slipping down badly as Cho continued his fine form to lead the pack, 52 pins ahead of his team-mate, Jang and tieing with Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong in second.

Cho ended the squad with 223 to take the lead with 1433 and despite Wu's 228, the 2006 Asian Games Masters gold medalist settled for second with 1386. Jang finished third with 1362 with the recovering Kong in fourth with 1353.

The second squad would take to the lanes at Khalifa Bowling Centre for their singles and the combined scores of both squads will determine the winners.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

17th January, Abu Dhabi: Debutant, Lexi Nicoll struck the first gold medal of the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship to snatch the gold medal from leader, Siti Shazwani of Malaysia, who tied with Hwang Sun-Ok for the silver.

2010 PBAP Classic and Milo Junior All-Stars champion, Siti Shazwani of Malaysia kicked of the championship with a sizzling 248 in her opening game to lead Japan's Misaki Mukotani by 4 pins.

The 22-year-old continued her relentless pace with 230 and 256 in her next two games for a 734 series to stretched her lead over Australia's Lexi Nicoll to 62 pins as the Japanese slipped down to fourth.

Another two respectable games of 216 and 225, Siti had a 44 pin lead over Nicoll with Asian Games triple gold medalist, Hwang Sun-Ok of Korea in third just one pin from the Aussie.

The Malaysian rookie felt the pressure and cave in with a poor 189 in her final game while Nicoll ended strongly with 259 to snatch victory and Australia's first gold medal with 1390.

Kwang almost robbed the silver medal away from Siti when she downed 247 in her last game but settled in joint-second to take home one silver medal each with 1364.

"I knew I had a shot at the gold medal after I was trailing the Malaysian in second after the fourth game," said the 22-year-old Nicoll from Sidney, Australia in her first senior championship for her country.

"I made sure I stayed focus and calm in the last game and I'm slightly surprise and delighted to have posted a big game to win the gold. I've to thank my coach back home and Chris Batson, who has helped us alot during the preparation."

Three fancied Koreans, Son Yun-Hee, Jeon Eun-Hee and 2010 AMF World Cup first runner-up, Gye Min-Young took the next three spots with 1305, 1297 and 1293 while Bernice Lim was Singapore's best finisher in seventh with 1252.

The men will take to the lanes for their Singles divided into two squads. The combined scores of both the squads will determine the winner. Click here for video interview.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

16th January, Abu Dhabi: The bowlers competing at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships got first hand test of the medium and short oil lane conditions laid down by the technical officials as they went through their paces during the official practice sessions after the official opening ceremony.

Team Singapore had their official practice in Squad B this afternoon and the coaches, William Woo and Francis Yeo expressed satisfaction on the progress made by the players.

Before the 107 men and 62 women got onto the lanes for their official practice sessions divided into two squads, 20 countries paraded in front of a half-packed centre and distinguished guests and federations representatives at Khalifa Bowling Centre.

The official opening ceremony was graced by His Excellency, Mohammed Ibrahim Al Mahmood, General Secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council together with Abdul Mohseen Al Dossari, General Secretary of the General Authority of Youth & Sports Welfare.

Mohammad Ali Al Ghazal Al Shamsi, Secretary General of Emirates Bowling Federation delivered a welcome address on behalf of its president, His Highness Sheikh Saeed Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan before Sheikh Talal Al-Sabah, President of ABF gave his speech.

Also present at the opening were FIQ President, Ms Jessie Phua, Mr Kevin Dornberger, WTBA President, Ms Vivien Lau, ABF Hon. Life President and Presidents of neighbouring Gulf area bowling federations. Delegates who attending the 21st ABF General Assembly also attended the opening.

Shaker Al-Hassan, one of the senior member of the UAE national teamn and Hind Yousuf Al Hammadi took the bowlers' oath after the speeches. The guest of honour then declared the championship officially opened. The teams marched off to concluded the simple ceremony.

After the lane maintenance, the Squad A official practice commenced which included the dual lane conditions laid out on each pair of lanes.

The general feeling of most teams interviewed expressed satisfation over the lane conditions and the general organisation of the championship.

The women will kick off the championship with their Singles event bowled over 6 games on short oil pattern in a single squad. The men will be divided into two squads over the afternoon.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

15th January, Abu Dhabi: One hundred and seven men and sixty-two women will do battle at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship which will kick off on Monday, January 17th at the Khalifa Bowling Centre in Zayed Sports City.

The 170 bowlers from a total of 20 countries supported by 70 officials have converged in Abu Dhabi for the start of the bi-annual championship hosted by Emirates Bowling Federation for the first time.

Team managers met at the meeting chaired by ABF Honorary Life President, Ms Vivien Lau presenting Sheikh Talal Al-Sabah, President of ABF, who welcomed team officials and coaches at the start of the meeting at Khalifa Bowling Centre.

Conducting the meeting was Dr Danny Santos, Vice President of ABF and the techincal delegate for the championship during which players and officials were finalised.

Also present were Mike Purdy of Kegel Compamy Inc., technical official responsible for lane maintenance and Sultan Al Marzuoqi, tournament manager. The Jury of Appeal appointed by ABF President were Kyohei Akagi, Suwalai Saturlee and Michael Seymour, who were also present at the meeting. Mr Akagi assisted Dr Santos to conduct the lane draw thereafter.

Earlier in the day, Sheikh Talal Al-Sabah chaired the 21st ABF General Assembly held at the Armed Forces Officers Club Hotel which was also attended by WTBA President, Mr Kevin Dornberger and ABF Hon. Life President, Ms Vivien Lau.

Apart from the normal business of a general assembly which sailed through quickly and smoothly, the meeting also confirmed that the 22nd edition of the Asian Championship in 2012 will be hosted by Hong Kong Tenpin Bowling Congress.

In addition to the 16th Asian Youth Championship which will be hosted by the Egyptian Bowling Federation from 10 - 20 December 2011, Thai Tenpin Bowling Association also confirmed that the dates for the 13th Asian Schools Championship will be held from 4 - 10 July, 2011.

Bid were requested from member federations for the hosting of the 14th Asian Schools, 2014 Asian Championships and the 17th Asian Youth Championships.

Mr Kevin Dornberger, who was invited by ABF to join the meeting, announced that two additional stops have been added to the inaugural WTBA World Bowling Tour 2011 - namely the Australian AMF Masters in Sydney (October 10 - 21) and the US Open in New Jersey, USA (Feb 21 - 27).

The top three ranked men and top 3 ranked women from the tour will also have the rare opportunity to appear at the WTBA World Tour Grand Finals at a PBA Tour event Live on TV and a chance to win handsome prizes.

The official opening ceremony will be held on Sunday, January 16 at 10.00am local time after which the official practice will take place, divided into two squads in the afternoon.

Bowlers and officials are invited to a welcome reception hosted by Emirates Bowling Federation at the Armed Forces Officers Club Hotel at 7.00pm.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.

14th January, Abu Dhabi: Emirates Bowling Federation is ready to host the 21st edition of the Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship as teams began to arrive at Khalifa Bowling Center in the bustling city of Abu Dhabi.

A total of 108 men, 63 women and 69 officials from 20 countries have confirmed their participation at the 21st Asian Tenpin Bowling Championship which has been postponed from October of 2010.

Australia, Chinese Taipei, Iran, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and host United Arab Emirates are fielding full team of 6 men and 6 women while Hong Kong is represented by 6 men and 5 women.

Bahrain (6 men, 2 women), Indonesia (5 men, 5 women), India (6 men), Jordan (1 men), Kuwait (6 men), Macau (6 men), Pakistan (6 men), Philippines (3 men, 3 women), Qatar (6 men) and Thailand (3 men) made up of the rest of the 20 countries.

The organising committee is busy finalising all the preparations to ensure that the championships run smoothly when it begins on January 16.

Meanwhile, ABF President, Sheikh Talal Al-Sabah chaired the ABF Executive Committee meeting which took place at the Khalifa Bowling Center conference room. Also present were WTBA President, Mr Kevin Dornberger, WTBA Honorary Life President, Mr Kyohei Akagi and ABF Honorary Life President, Ms Vivien Lau.

Vice Presidents, Mr. Mohammed A. Alkhaja (UAE), Dr. Danny Santos (THA), and Mr. Andrew Frawley (AUS) were also present together with EXCO members, Mr. Nasser Mubarak Al-Sulati (BHR), Mr. Fong Wun Man (MAC), Mr. Farouk Haridi (EGY) and Ms. Suwalai Satrulee (THA).

The 21st ABF General Assembly will be held at the Armed Forces Officers Club Hotel tomorrow at 10.00am while teams will have their bowling balls registered and their unofficial practices.

The Team Managers' Meeting will be held at Khalifa Bowling Centre at 8.00pm on January 15th when players will be finalised. The opening ceremony will be held on January, 16th at 10.00am followed by the official practice in the afternoon.

Emirates Bowling Federation will also be hosting a welcome reception at the Armed Forces Officers Club Hotel later in the evening.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Abu Dhabi.