Bowls Australia

Australian governing body for sport of bowls

Bowls Australia
Official website
Corinda Bowls Club in Corinda, Queensland

Sport	Bowls
Jurisdiction	Australia
Founded	1911
Affiliation	World Bowls
President	Bob Boorman
CEO	Neil Dalrymple
www.bowls.com.au

Bowls Australia is the governing body for the sport of bowls in Australia.^[1] Bowls Australia is responsible for the leadership, development and management of lawn bowls in Australia. It is a not-for-profit organisation governed by a voluntary board that provides the strategic direction for the sport and the strategies that are implemented by the staff at the national office.

Bowls Australia's members are the six state and two territory bowls associations representing Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.

There are over 2,000 clubs and 240,000 registered participants affiliated with member states and territories. In addition, there are many social bowlers participating in competitions across Australia.

Bowls Australia is affiliated with World Bowls^[2] and the Australian Commonwealth Games Association. It is a core sport in the Commonwealth Games, which are held every four years.

The Australian National Bowls Championships celebrated its centenary in 2013.

History

In 1911, Bowls Australia, originally known as the Australian Bowling Council, was formed at conference of state delegates in Melbourne.^[3]

The first Australian Championships under the new body were held in 1912, and the first Australian representative side played in New Zealand in 1914.

In 1928, the Australian Bowls Council became affiliated with the International Bowling Board, now known as World Bowls Inc.

The first World Bowls Championship was played at Kyeemagh Bowls Club in New South Wales in 1966.

Structure

The national body has eight state member associations:

Bowls Australian Capital Territory
Bowls Queensland
Bowls NSW
Bowls Northern Territory
Bowls Western Australia
Bowls Victoria
Bowls South Australia
Bowls Tasmania

The main competitions Bowls Australia organises are the annual Australian Open (AO),^[4] Bowls Premier League (BPL) and BPL Cup. They also stage a number of other important national competitions, as well as hosting international events in Australia, including the upcoming World Bowls 2023 Championships.