Sport | Bowls |
---|---|
Founded | 1984 |
Continent | International (World Indoor Bowls Council) |
Most recent champion(s) |
2016 Men's Singles Andrew Kyle 2016 Women's Singles Katherine Rednall 2016 Mixed Pairs Chloe Geechan Malcolm De Sousa 2015 U25 Men's Singles Ryan Atkins 2015 U25 Women's Singles Amy Williams 2015 U25 Mixed Pairs Carrie McLean Ryan Atkins |
The WIBC Championships are annual indoor bowls world championships event, run by the governing body of the sport, the World Indoor Bowls Council (WIBC). The WIBC run a men's singles, ladies singles and mixed pairs world championships event at senior level each year to rival the more prominent World Indoor Bowls Championships organised by the World Bowls Tour. The WIBC also organise the men's singles, ladies singles and mixed pairs world championships at under 25 level each year, which are held separately from the senior event.
The World Indoor Bowls Council (WIBC) is the governing body for the sport of indoor bowls worldwide. It is responsible for properly constituting the laws of the sport. Along with World Bowls Ltd and the Professional Bowls Association (PBA), they run the World Bowls Tour (WBT) each year.
The WIBC was established in 1983, with the first World Indoor Championships singles and pairs titles for men staged in 1984 and 1985, respectively. In 1987, a Ladies Section (WIBCLS) was founded, with the first WIBCLS Singles Championships taking place a year later. Following the 1992 tournament, a new organisation called the World Bowls Tour (WBT) was established, and by 1988 the World Indoor Singles and Pairs titles for men was run under the auspices of the WBT. Within twelve months, the Men and Ladies sections combined to form a newly constituted Council, resulting in the WIBC Men’s and Ladies’ World Championships. It did not take long before the first Two-Wood Mixed Pairs Championship was added to the tournament format.
The following are a list of member nations and organisations of the WIBC:
English Indoor Bowling Association (EIBA)
Guernsey Indoor Bowling Association (GIBA)
Association of Irish Indoor Bowls (AIBA)
Irish Women's Indoor Bowling Association (IWIBA)
Isle of Man Bowling Association (IMBA)
Jersey Indoor Bowling Association (JIBA)
Nederlandse Indoor & Outdoor Bowls Bond (NIOBB)
Scottish Indoor Bowling Association (SIBA)
Welsh Indoor Bowls Association (WIBA)
Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowls Association (WLIBA)
In 2010, Wales' Kerry Packwood recorded the first ever whitewash and the highest score in the championships history, in a first round win against Mary Alderson from the Isle of Man, winning the match in straight sets 17–0, 19–0. In 2013, Jersey staged the senior championships for the first time. It has previously staged the under 25 event. In 2014, Julie Forrest of Scotland became the first person to win the men's or women's title for a record fourth time. In 2015, Chloe Greechan of Jersey became the youngest ever bowls world champion at 14-years-old, winning the mixed pairs title with her father, Thomas Greechan.