5th October, London: Aumi Guerra of the Dominican Republic will defend her title at the 47th QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, from November 30th to December 7th, joined by the reigning Men's champion and two-time winner, Michael Schmidt of Canada.

Anne-Marie Board, QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Manager said: "This is amazing! It's only the second time in the history of the event that both reigning champions have returned and the other occasion was 1993 when the tournament was also held in Johannesburg!"

The returning champions that year were Paeng Nepomuceno of the Philippines and Martina Beckel of Germany, who had won their titles in Le Mans, France, in 1992.

Only one player in the 46-year history of the event has successfully defended the title and that was Australia's Jeanette Baker in 1982 and 1983.

The bowlers for the host nation have now been nominated. They are Francois Louw and Marike van de Ber. Francois is a bowling centre manager who also competed last year in Toulon, where he was involved in a one game play off with Biboy Rivera of the Philippines to determine the final player for the round robin.

Francois lost on that occasion but will surely be looking improve on his ninth place now that the tournament is in his home country. Marika will be making her Bowling World Cup debut.

Also making a first appearance in the event will be Haiti. Jean Edouard Nelson, President of the Haitian Federation told us about bowling in his country: "We've virtually nothing now. Our headquarters was located in Port-au-Prince, Haiti but was completely destroyed in the earthquake.

"We had six bowling centres before the earthquake but now only a small centre in St. Marc is left. It's a long way from the capital and our infrastructure has been very badly damaged, so it's difficult to get to.

It'll take time to rebuild the country. And don't forget, so many of us have lost family members or friends."

Anne-Marie commented: "Haiti's representatives will be Nathalie Sterlin and Jean Stephane, who is a 36-year-old journalist, and after all the country has suffered it will be a special pleasure to welcome them and all their delegation to Johannesburg."

The Swedish participants have just been announced and the Bowling World Cup will welcome another returning champion, this time Tomas Leandersson, who won the title in Lisbon in 2000. Tomas has also acted as coach to the Swedish players in the past. Tomas also represented Sweden in South Africa in 1993, when he finished in second place.

"We're so pleased that Tomas will be back as a player," said Anne-Marie. "He was with us last year as coach to the Swedish team and it will be great to see him back on the lanes."

Tomas will face up again to another Scandinavian player who has excelled in the past - Kimmo Lehtonen, who reached the top eight in 2000, not to mention Steve Thornton from England (5th in 2000) and Thomas Gross of Austria (8th in 2007).

For the women we will welcome back Krista Pollanen of Finland (5th in 2008) and Sophie Herbin of Monaco (8th in 1995). Also returning will be last year's Sportswoman of the Tournament, Bigi Manico of Switzerland, who will be making her 10th appearance in the event.

The resort for this year's event has been confirmed as The Monte Casino Resort, which boasts an array of entertainment and will ensure that competitors and visitors alike will be treated to the best South Africa has to offer. So check out www.montecasino.co.za.

Other hotels available are Southern Sun (www.southernsun.com/Hotels/Montecasino), the Palazzo Hotel (www.southernsun.com/Deluxe/The-Palazzo-Montecasino) and Sun Square (www.southernsun.com/SunSquare/Montecasino).

And for social networking fans, the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup can now be followed on Facebook. Check out the World Cup page on www.qubicaamf.com to get all the latest scores and news during the event.

QubicaAMF Worldwide is one of the largest bowling products companies in the world. With worldwide headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, USA, and European headquarters in Bologna, Italy, the company manufactures a complete line of high-quality, innovative solutions for new and existing bowling and entertainment centres.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

5th August, London: The 47th QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup 2011 promises to be a clash of champions as several former winners have confirmed their entries for this year's championship which will be held at the Northcliff Bowling Centre in Johannesburg.

The two-time QubicaAMF Bowling World Champion (2010 Toulon, France, and 2005 Ljubljana, Slovenia), Michael Schmidt of Canada, has won his way through to defend his title this year in Johannesburg, South Africa.

But he will face stiff competition from our 2007 (St Petersburg, Russia) runner-up, the ever popular Jason Belmonte of Australia. And in the women's section the two protagonists from the 2006 final in Caracas, Venezuela, will be facing up again.

Diandra Asbaty of the USA, will be making her second appearance in the event, as will Lisa John, of England, runner-up that year. It is all shaping up very nicely for a spectacular event this year.

QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Manager, Anne-Marie Board, said: "I cannot wait for the competition this year! Just imagine: Michael and Jason, Diandra and Lisa - that's so exciting! And most countries have not declared their players yet."

The tournament is scheduled for November 30th to December 7th at the Northcliff Bowling Centre, owned by Let's Go Bowling South Africa. It will be the second time that the Bowling World Cup finals have been held in South Africa, the first time being in 1993.

The host now will be Gerald Paluzzi, who commented: "We at Let's Go Bowling are very pleased to host this year's QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup. Every time I see an updated participant list, I get more excited.

"And I also hope that many competitors will take the opportunity to see more of the wonders of South Africa. We have a lot to offer, especially with the Kruger National Park on the doorstep of Johannesburg."

The organizer will also be welcoming back the Tranier couple from New Caledonia, Marin and Samy-Anna, who first met at the Bowling World Cup in 1992 and married in 2009. Steve Thornton will be the male representative from England who will be making his third appearance in the finals and who hit a perfect game in 2005.

Jennifer Willis-Park will be the female representative for Canada, making her second appearance having finished 8th in 2008.

The Champions of 1993 were Rainer Puisis of Germany and Pauline Smith-Buck of England. Only one South African has ever won the title - Anne Jacobs who won in Hermosillo, Mexico, in 1994.

South Africa has a population of over 50 million, the most famous and revered of whom is undoubtedly Nelson Mandela, often known as Madiba, his Xhosa tribe name. It is a country rich in sporting heritage, boasting world champions in many sports and it hosted the FIFA World Cup last year.

QubicaAMF Worldwide is the founder, organiser and principal sponsor of the Bowling World Cup. Additional information on the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, including archives and bulletins for this year’s event can be found on www.qubicaamf.com.

QubicaAMF Worldwide is one of the largest bowling products companies in the world. With worldwide headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, USA, and European headquarters in Bologna, Italy, the company manufactures a complete line of high-quality, innovative solutions for new and existing bowling and entertainment centres. Please see the web site www.qubicaamf.com for further information.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

27th March, London: The 47th QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup will be held in the Northcliff Bowling Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa from November 30 to December 7, the site of the 1993 event as announced by Mr John Walker, CEO and President of QubicaAMF Worldwide.

The "Big Game" will start on Wednesday 30th November 2011 with the finals on 7th December. Making the 2011 announcement, CEO and President John Walker said how excited he is to be bringing the World Cup back to South Africa and that it will be a great event and every one of our guests will be glad they are there this year.

Our hosts, Let's Go Bowling South Africa, have added Northcliff to their chain of centres. It is a state-of-the-art 24-lane centre with the latest QubicaAMF equipment including Bowland our superior management and Conqueror Pro bowler friendly computerised systems, and the world’s best fastest and highest performance SPL lanes and XLi pinspotters.

Gerald Paluzzi, head of Let's Go Bowling South Africa, commented: "It's a wonderful opportunity and a privilege to be able to host bowling's most prestigious tournament herein Johannesburg.

"Ever since we hosted the Bowling World Cup in 1993, it has been my dream to bring it back to South Africa. We are very much looking forward to welcoming the world's leading bowlers and we guarantee them, their supporters and visitors a most memorable event and experience."

Anne-Marie Board, QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Manager, was also very pleased and said: "I'm so happy to be able to take the World Cup back to Johannesburg. I know Gerald and all the team from Let's Go Bowling South Africa will look after us royally, as they did 18 years ago. That was my first tournament as World Cup Manager, so it has a special place in my heart."

The centre also boasts a pro shop which services the greater Gauteng Area along with top class coaching facilities.

Gerald Paluzzi went on the mention the other attractions of South Africa: "This country has been one of the hottest properties on the world's tourist schedules and we invite one and all to avail themselves of the wonderful country and its people and experience unsurpassed African hospitality."

Full details will follow of special deals with South African Airways. The dates have been chosen to fit in with other key international bowling events.

South Africa's own Hall of Fame will open alongside the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup to honour those who have contributed so richly to the development of the industry and sport of bowling in the country.

The Champions of 1993 were Rainer Puisis of Germany and Pauline Smith-Buck of England. Only one South African has ever won the title - Anne Jacobs who won in Hermosillo, Mexico, in 1994.

South Africa has a population of over 50 million, the most famous and revered of whom is undoubtedly Nelson Mandela, often known as Madiba, his Xhosa tribe name. It is a country rich in sporting heritage, boasting world champions in many sports and it hosted the FIFA World Cup last year.

QubicaAMF Worldwide is the founder, organiser and principal sponsor of the Bowling World Cup. Additional information on the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, including archives and bulletins for this year’s event can be found on www.qubicaamf.com.

QubicaAMF Worldwide is one of the largest bowling products companies in the world. With worldwide headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, USA, and European headquarters in Bologna, Italy, the company manufactures a complete line of high-quality, innovative solutions for new and existing bowling and entertainment centres. Please see the web site www.qubicaamf.com for further information.

Photos courtesy of the City of Johannesburg.