Lawn Bowls at the 20th Commonwealth Games 2014 in Glasgow

Sports fans are eagerly looking forward to the 20th Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next year, with lawn bowls among the highlights of Scotland’s prestige event. Tickets went on sale in August 2013, and are being snapped up quickly, as the London 2012 Olympics have whetted people’s appetite for another feast of sport in Britain.

Although bowls isn’t an Olympic sport, it is one of the core disciplines of the Commonwealth Games, and has a large and devoted following. Many world champions are among the players expected to take part in the event in Glasgow in July, giving a master-class in lawn bowls to spectators in Scotland and those watching on TV around the world.

Anyone inspired to take up the sport, as interest grows in the run-up to the games, can buy bowls clothing, bowls accessories and a full range of bowls equipment from Bowls World.

Lawn Bowls Scotland – click here to find out more about our range.

Booking Seats for the Games

Tickets for the Commonwealth Games are being sold in two phases. Efforts were made to simplify the system after much-publicised difficulties with booking seats for the Olympics in 2012. This time round, the first phase started in August 2013, with members of the public who want to book having to apply by September 16.

There has already been a lot of interest and there will have to be a draw for tickets for some popular events. However, any tickets which are not sold in the first batch will go on general sale from mid-October, so, if you were too late for the draw or missed out, you could still be lucky.

High Hopes for Lawn Bowls in Glasgow

The lawn bowls events in Scotland at the Commonwealth Games will be staged at the newly-completed Kelvingrove Bowls Centre. This is in one of Glasgow’s best-known parks, next to the grand Victorian buildings of the Kelvingrove Park Art Gallery and Museum. The venue has been brought up to top international standard in the last few years, making it one of the finest in the country, and there will be up to 30 rinks in use at any one time during the Games.

The bowls competitions will start as a round robin and then become a knock-out tournament, with tension building as the battle for medals heats up. There will be seating for up to 2,500 spectators and, if you are lucky enough to be there, you will see some unforgettable top-level sporting action.

One of the Games’ Core Sports

Lawn bowls has been one of the core sports ever since the first Commonwealth Games was held in 1930. The sport has only failed to feature in one Games since then – in Jamaica in 1966 – so the Glasgow Games will mark the 19th time that the sport has been included.

Players from many different countries have won medals over the years. In 2010, when the Games were held in Delhi, India, Rob Weale of Wales scooped the gold medal in the men’s singles, while the English pair Stuart Airey and Merv King took silver in the pairs contest. Meanwhile, in the women’s competition, Natalie Melmore of England took the gold in the singles, and there was also gold for Ellen Falkner and Amy Monkhouse in the pairs.

An Inclusive Sporting Event

Bowls is played by a more diverse range of competitors than most other elite sports, with people from many different ages and backgrounds reaching the highest levels. There will be ten gold medals up for grabs in the sport in Glasgow, including men’s and women’s singles, doubles, triples and fours contests.

The other two golds are for Para-Sport events, open to bowlers who have a physical disability or a visual impairment. Bowls is one of five Para-Sports being included in the Games, which will have a total of 22 medals available to elite athletes with disabilities.

Interest is already growing in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, and in all the sports which will feature, including lawn bowls. Scotland will be the focus of the sporting world during the event and many people will be inspired to take up a new sport.

About Bowls World

If you are interested in trying your hand at bowls, the good news is that you don’t need to be super-fit, as this is a sport accessible to all ages and abilities, from juniors right up to older players who want to bring some sport into their lives. All the bowls equipment you need, from bowls shoes to indoor carpet bowls and junior bowls, is available from Bowls World, who are the specialists in this field.

We stock many top makes, including Drakes Pride Coloured Bowls, Taylor Lawn Bowls and Henselite Tiger Pro Bowls, all at competitive prices. As well as the bowls themselves, our range includes a full range of bowls accessories, such as Emsmorn bowling bags and other essentials like grip waxes, grip gloves and chalks.

New Bowls Colours

Meanwhile, some exciting new colours have been introduced in Henselite and Drakes Pride bowls. Henselite’s new colour additions are Atomic Re and Ocean Green, and Drakes Pride have introduced white-yellow-green, blue-blue-white, and orange-yellow-white bowls. Just click on the link below to find out more.

Lawn Bowls Equipment – click here to see our range.