The Blind Bowls Association of Canada (BBAC) favoured Winnipeg with its Championships this year, bringing together visually impaired bowlers from across Canada to compete in both singles and pairs events.   Bob Strong brought together volunteers from local clubs and resources of Bowls Manitoba to host and officiate the event at the two greens locally called Sargent Park and Thistle.   The City provided daily cutting and rolling-—and the weather, although hot, failed to interrupt play during the five-day competition.   A huge list of umpires and markers was coordinated by Emilie Ammazzini; and BBAC provided management personnel for the special arrangements necessary for this unique* type of tournament.

* Decades of bowling do not prepare you for the skills and organization that go into facilitating a tournament between players who compensate for their visual limitations in order to compete.   For those interested, an explanation follows these pictures.

Bob Strong, Binh Vo with Vivian Berkeley (BBAC President) & Emilie Ammazzini
Connie McCron with Vivian Berkeley & Emilie
A good head, whether you are sighted or not, is much the same
All the players (and their directors) were winners, although not all were recognized with medals or plaques. From Manitoba, Binh Vo (assisted by Bob Strong) won Gold; and Jenifer Morland (assisted by Sandra Mulholland) won Silver—in their respective events. For a full list of the winners, visit the BBAC site.

Despite the pictures, which at first glance fail to identify the tournament’s uniqueness, there was a lot going on that needs to be noticed:

• Each rink has a string running its length between the rink numbers. Not only does this enable the marker to centre the jack, it also may be felt by an unsighted bowler to orient him or her when taking the chosen stance on the mat.
• On each of the green’s side banks are a series of numbers that mark the 23 metre distance from the mat (again used by the marker) and each 2 metres thereafter (25m, 27m, 29m, 31m, and 33m). Both directions are thus marked to assist in announcing the length of the delivered jack and subsequent bowls (when asked).
• Each bowler has a director (who in some pictures appears to be obstructing play by standing in front of the bowler). The director does much of the shot-choosing and all the visual work, relying on the bowler for the physical delivery. His or her directions to the bowler include a verbal description of the head and any guards to it, advice on the bias, weight, and direction using his voice to assist the bowler’s aim.
• Depending on the degree of visual impairment, the bowler has developed a ‘stance’ on the mat that gives the maximum control of delivery. One may deliver from a kneeling position (to prevent altering direction during preparation), another will feel the edge of the mat to align her pivot foot before standing, and yet another will use a traditional (sighted) position that focuses on practise swings of the arm with correction by the director.
• The muscle memory of a sighted bowler relates the visual position of the jack to the weight required; whereas the ‘blind’ bowler needs a numeric value to cue the weight—one which is given by the director. This is similar (for those acquainted with other sports) to the numbers skips use when giving the broom and weight in curling.

Here, the director coaches during delivery, getting out of the way once the bowl is released. Directors sometimes stand behind the bowler to act as the eyes when aiming; and sometimes, with partially sighted bowlers, give directions from the head (as would a skip to a sighted partner in pairs).