John Janawicz of Winter Haven, Fla., is the 2023 Jim Jaryszak Laneman Award recipient. He received his plaque during a presentation on the trade show floor at International Bowl Expo in Orlando.
The award recognizes a person for their behind-the-scenes work as a laneman, and is selected by the USBC Equipment Specifications and Certifications team from submitted nominations.
“It’s definitely an honor for me to win this award, especially since it’s named after Jim, who was someone I knew and was a mainstay at USBC’s equipment specs and research department,” Janawicz said. “It’s cool to be recognized for an award in lane maintenance because lane maintenance is one of those deals where if everything is going well, you don’t hear anything at all. But if something goes bad, then you’re probably going to hear about it for the rest of your life. So, it’s nice to get some recognition for doing some good work.”
Janawicz’s “good work” in lane maintenance started when he took a position as a laneman at the 1998 USBC Open Championships, followed by a stint working the same position at the Junior Gold Championships. Following those events, Kegel hired Janawicz as a full-time employee in July 1998. He has worked for that company ever since and is currently one of its international technical delegates and its technician/pattern specialist.
Janawicz estimates he has worked more than 300 events on five continents (Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America) and has visited more than 40 countries.
Jaryszak was instrumental in setting up the USBC Sport Bowling program and served as the point person when the PBA was updating its animal patterns. He passed away in 2010.
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