E-dition No. 983 • Thursday, January 4, 2018
Editor: Bob Johnson (bjibob@aol.com)
Paris Center to Be Leveled for Olympic Venue
Here’s an unwelcome twist to bowling’s ongoing Olympic Games quest: The largest bowling center in Paris, Indy Bowling Paris, is expected to be demolished to make way for a venue that will host Olympic Games competition in 2024.
According to long-time French bowling journalist Bernard Mora, Indy Bowling Paris is the largest center in the “City of Lights,” with 24 lanes. It also includes snooker, pool, “table football” and arcade games, in addition to a bar. You can view photos of the center here: http://www.bowling-paris.fr/Photos-indy-bowling-paris-fr,1,11117.html.
The center is housed in a large parking structure that has been earmarked for demolition to make way for what is being called “Arena 2” for the 2024 Games.
Damian Daramsy has been in charge of the center since 2013, and has been operating on year-to-year contracts with Paris18, the owner of the property. Paris18 is one of 20 arrondissements, or districts, within the city.
“We learned about the project in newspapers, but I have no information from Paris18,” Daramsy told Mora. He added that it’s likely the bowling center will close at the end on 2018 or the beginning of 2019.
Daramsy has asked for an appointment with the Mayor of Paris18 to request assistance in finding a new location for the center.
Shannon O’Keefe Signs With Hammer Bowling
Hammer bowling has announced the addition of Shannon O’Keefe to its national pro staff.
O’Keefe is a 13-time member of Team USA and a seven-time world champion. She has six Professional Women’s Bowling Association titles to her credit, including one major, the 2017 Smithfield PWBA Tour Championship.
Since its early days as Faball Industries, Hammer has been committed to professional bowling. This level of support was instrumental in O’Keefe’s decision to sign with Hammer.
“Hammer, over the last three years, has shown their full commitment to the PWBA Tour,” O’Keefe said. “It’s very important to me that I stack the deck in my favor to continue being successful.”
O’Keefe said it was exciting to not only represent Hammer, but the many loyal fans of the brand.
Rob Gotchall, Marketing Manager for Players, Promotions and Events for Hammer, said h fels O’Keefe is a perfect fit for the brand.
“She embodies the brand’s toughness and iconic name,” Gotchall said. “She’s one of the toughest competitors I’ve ever seen.”
“Having the opportunity to have Shannon join our pro staff is honestly a dream come true,” Gotchall added. “Not only are we acquiring one of the best bowlers in the world in the prime of her career, but we are adding a fabulous person to our family both on and off the lanes.”
O’Keefe resides in O’Fallon, Ill. When not competing, she serves as the head women’s bowling coach at McKendree University.
Brunswick Extends Sponsorship of Euro Challenge
Brunswick Bowling Products has renewed a contract with Dream-Bowl Palace in Unterfohring, Germany, to continue as the host of the Brunswick Euro Challenge until 2021.
The 15th annual Brunswick Euro Challenge (BEC) will be held March 10-18, welcoming bowlers from a dozen countries as they compete for a total prize purse of €105,000 (approximately $124,420). This will be the sixth year that Dream-Bowl Palace has hosted.
“Dream-Bowl Palace and the Knoebl family have been wonderful hosts to the tournament,” said John Prokopec, Brunswick Bowling’s Director of International Sales. “They run a consistent and professional tournament. The size of their facility and its centralized location in Europe is great for competitors and spectators alike.”
The BEC will be the fifth stop on the 2018 European Bowling Tour, and one of only two EBT “Platinum” tournaments.
Since its start in 2004, the Brunswick Euro Challenge has established itself as one of the best-attended bowling events in Europe, attracting a mix of promising amateur players and PBA stars from Europe, Asia and the U.S.
“The BEC is the most recognized tournament in Europe and has bowlers competing from all over the continent,” said Prokopec. “We take pride in the opportunity to support the sport of bowling and bring so many talented athletes together.”
Qualifying will begin on March 10 and continue through March 17. Finals will be held on Sunday, March 18, for the top 64 qualifying players.
“We’re looking forward to seeing so many well-known bowlers as well as old friends and new friends again this year. Our whole team is proud to have such a big tournament in our center,” said proprietor Martin Knoebl. “We’ve done business for many years with Brunswick and we’re looking forward to having this partnership for many more years.”
For more information about the BEC, go to: www.brunswickeurochallenge.com.
Former ABC President Rothschild Passes Away
Lowell Rothschild of Tucson, Ariz., a USBC Hall of Fame member who served as the American Bowling Congress President during the 1977-78 season, died last Friday. He was 90.
Rothschild’s volunteer work in bowling started in 1958 when he manned the Tucson Bowling Association Tournament registration desk. He would become a director of the association a year later and would serve as association president from 1962 to 1964.
Rothschild also became involved in the state organization, serving as Arizona Bowling Association President in 1962-63. During his time, he pushed to create the Arizona Bowling Hall of Fame.
He joined ABC as a director in 1963 and used his skills as an attorney to serve on the rules, legal and legislative committees. His election as an ABC director also led him to participate in the ABC Tournament, and he made his debut at the 1963 event in Buffalo, N.Y. He reached the 50-year participation mark in 2013.
“I was so well received by the ABC and immediately got active in a few different committees,” Rothschild said during his 50th appearance. “I just thought it was a privilege to be involved in the growth of a national sport, and part of that meant supporting and participating in the tournament.”
Rothschild served on several committees — including industry relations, international competition, nominating and ABC Tournament site selection — during his time as a director. When he became president of ABC, he created the Education Committee, designed to focus on ABC’s need to educate and train association volunteers.
Following his term as president, he continued to serve as a committee member, including the Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame, nominating, advisory, rulebook and international activities committees. He helped raise more than $1 million for the Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame, and his fundraising experience led to his appointment as chairman of the United States Tenpin Bowling Federation fundraising committee in 1992.
Rothschild was elected to the USBC Hall of Fame for Meritorious Service in 2009.
Opening of New Splitsville Is Delayed
The opening of the new Splitsville Luxury Lanes at the Disney California Resort has been delayed from the originally announced “late 2017” to “early 2018.”
On Dec. 9, a video of a fire in front of the under-construction entertainment venue was posted on social media. However, the next day, park officials said that the blaze was confined to a dumpster and extinguished quickly, with no damage to the building. The fire did not impact the construction schedule.
On Splitsville’s Facebook page, the company continued to promote job fairs, with both front-of-house and back-of-house positions available.
Briefly…
* Cathy and Donald Bock have purchased Broadway Bowl, a 26-lane center in Cheektowaga, N.Y. The seller was Ed Seger. The Bocks are first-time proprietors. Marcel Fournier, an associate of the Hansell Group, served as the broker in the transaction. You can take a look at the exterior of the center, from the perspective of a drone, here: http://www.broadwaysportscenter.com.
* ESPN’s coverage of the GEICO PBA World Series of Bowling IX presented by Eldorado Resorts Reno Properties concludes with the seventh World Bowling Tour Men’s and Women’s Finals presented by PBA Sunday at 1 p.m. EST from the National Bowling Stadium. Featured players are Shalin Zulkifli, Danielle McEwan, Diana Zavjalova, Marshall Kent, Jesper Svensson and Jason Belmonte. The matches will be contested using World Bowling’s “Current Frame” scoring system, in which players earn 30 pins per frame for each strike, 10 pins plus the total from their first shot of that frame for a spare, or actual total pinfall for the frame for an open. The format consists of 10 frames, the same as in a traditional game, but there are no additional shots in the 10th frame if a player strikes or spares. The maximum score is still 300 if a player strikes in all 10 frames.
* Ten finalists have been named in the search for the 20th member of the Green Bay Packers Fan Hall of Fame, and Mike Sledz, Director of League Development for Bowlero Corp., is once again among them. You can read about Sledz’s loyalty to the Packers and vote for him here: http://nfl.packers.com/fan_zone/fan-hall-of-fame-2017/voting/.
* The guest this week on Phantom Radio is former PBA player Bruce Hamilton. To listen to the conversation, go to: https://kegel.squarespace.com/phantomblog/2018/1/2/bruce-hamilton-phantom-radio.
* CONTACT: Please send business news, event information, etc. to Bob Johnson at bjibob@aol.com. For breaking business news, visit bcmmag.com or bowlersjournal.com, and “Like” Bowling Center Management and Bowlers Journal International on Facebook. BJI Cyber Reports are now archived at bcmmag.com.
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