Story And Photo Courtesy Of Bowl.Com
2020 CHAMPIONSHIPS TOURNAMENTS FAQ
ARLINGTON, Texas – The scheduled start of the 2020 United States Bowling Congress Open Championships and 2020 USBC Women’s Championships will move to September and include a modified format to allow for increased social distancing for competitors.
The move to September is designed to give tournament bowlers more time to focus on their personal situations during this difficult period. In surveys, registered competitors said they still would like to participate in the tournament late in the year, if public health conditions allow. Moving the tournaments to September gives everyone a chance to consider their options and plan for their own circumstances.
The Open Championships at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nevada, will start Sept. 12 and run until Nov. 21 (last team date), while the Women’s Championships at the South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas will kick off Sept. 19 and run through Oct. 18.
The tournaments will feature a shorter daily squad schedule, without early-morning or late-night squads. A survey showed 62 percent of Open Championships registered teams are interested in bowling in the fall, while 37 percent of Women’s Championships teams expressed interest. Since there is a lot of uncertainty, the schedule is built with some flexibility. Additional team squads can be added every other day or tournament dates can be extended, if more teams want to compete.
“Our first concern is the well-being of our members,” USBC Executive Director Chad Murphy said. “Moving the tournaments to later in the year gives our bowlers and their families a chance to consider what is best for their circumstances. We appreciate the amazing patience and compassion that we have seen from all of our team captains throughout this process.”
For both the Open and Women’s Championships, the format will include only one team on a pair, to allow for increased social distancing and reduce the number of teams per squad. USBC will continue to collaborate with its venue hosts and modify participant flow, space markings and occupancy, as well as photo and squad room processes, based on public health guidelines.
With the 2020-2021 bowling season officially starting on Aug. 1, the 2020-2021 season rules, including the no-balance hole rule, will be in effect.
USBC will provide pre-registration to Captain’s Club members – coordinators with five or more teams – starting April 17, asking them to submit a form with the dates their teams want to compete, which will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis.
Registration will open to the public on April 27, at which time teams will be able to go into the Online Registration System and move their 2020 teams to any open dates/squads.
Teams that choose not to compete in 2020 may request to have their payment used for the 2021 tournament or they may submit a request for a refund.
Visit the Open Championships or Women’s Championships information page for directions on changing your team date, applying your payment to the 2021 event or to request a refund.
Team USA News.
ARLINGTON, Texas – The United States Bowling Congress has suspended the Team USA and Junior Team USA programs for the remainder of 2020 because of uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the postponement of international competitions to 2021.
This was a painful and difficult decision for everyone involved as the Team USA program represents the core of USBC’s mission, vision and values. Team USA programs provide athletes the opportunity to compete against the best in their sport on an international stage, and bowling is no different. Earning a roster spot and representing the United States in international competitions is an aspirational goal that begins for many as young bowlers at the Junior Gold Championships.
But the COVID-19 pandemic has stopped the sports world. World Bowling has pushed its world championships events to 2021, and USBC is focused on the well-being of our athletes and communities. Sadly, it appears clear there will be no international events for Team USA in 2020, and training as a team in the elite environment Team USA deserves will not be possible in the near future.
While USBC feels suspending the Team USA program for 2020 is the only responsible choice, we believe no athlete should be deprived the Team USA experience they earned or the opportunity to compete for the U.S. because of something out of their control.
Therefore, all 2020 Team USA and Junior Team USA members, if they remain age-eligible, automatically will be placed on their respective 2021 teams.
“We know this is disappointing for our Team USA athletes who worked hard to earn the honor of representing our country in competition,” Team USA Head Coach Rod Ross said about suspending Team USA operations in 2020. “Unfortunately, we do not see any possibility of Team USA competing this calendar year. We look forward to 2021, with a stronger expanded team that includes current team members and those who make the squad at the 2021 (USBC) Team USA Trials.”
Team USA competes in prestigious events throughout the world and 2020 was to feature such events as the World Youth Championships, World Singles Championships, Pan American Combined Championships, Pan American Champion of Champions and the annual QubicaAMF World Cup.
The attention now will turn to 2021 and bowlers still will be able to earn spots on next year’s teams at the Team USA Trials and U.S. Amateur Championships, scheduled for January 2021.
At the 2021 Team USA Trials and U.S. Amateur Championships, the following competitors will earn spots:
2021 Team USA
* The top four men and top four women, by performance
* The U.S. Amateur champions
* Two men and two women will be at-large selections made by the National Selection Committee (NSC)
2021 Junior Team USA
* The top four boys and top four girls, by performance, who are age-eligible
* Two boys and two girls will be at-large selections made by the NSC
The annual summer camps for Team USA, Junior Team USA and the junior developmental teams also will return in 2021.
These decisions were made in consultation with the USBC Athletes Advisory Council (AAC). The AAC is a group of current and former Team USA athletes serving with a mission to communicate the interests and protect the rights of athletes. All members have represented USBC Team USA in the Pan American Games, World Bowling World Championships or American Zone Championships or other major international competition in the past 10 years.
Team USA members not only are the top athletes in the sport but also are the most visible ambassadors of bowling. Learn more about the team members and the Team USA programs at BOWL.com/TeamUSA and BOWL.com/JuniorTeamUSA.
Junior Gold News.
ARLINGTON, Texas – International Bowling Campus Youth Development has canceled its national youth championships events, including the Junior Gold Championships presented by Hammer, scheduled for July in Las Vegas.
The cancellation of events includes the USA Bowling National Championships, the Bowling.com Youth Open Championships, and the Survivor tournament.
More than 4,000 youths already had qualified for the events, set to take place at seven bowling centers in Las Vegas from July 8-26.
“All of us at IBC Youth understand and share in the disappointment, as July is our time to celebrate youth bowling with the athletes, families, coaches, and volunteers,” said Gary Brown, IBC Youth Managing Director. “But this summer is the time to ensure the focus is on the safety and welfare of our bowling families.”
The COVID-19 pandemic already has had a damaging financial impact on families throughout the country and likely will affect the ability of many athletes to attend. Others may choose not to attend out of travel concerns, and IBC Youth does not feel it is proper to put any additional stress on our advancers’ families.
“We appreciate everyone’s understanding and support as we navigate through this,” USBC Executive Director Chad Murphy said. “The tournaments already were impacted as Junior Gold local qualifiers and USA Bowling regional qualifying events could not be held in the past month, which was the right thing to do as we protect our families.”
Over the next few weeks, every 2020 Junior Gold qualifier will have their qualifying fee ($100, $150 or $200) deposited into their SMART account. IBC Youth will add an additional $70,000 to the scholarship pool, which will be distributed evenly to the advancers.
Refunds for Spectator Passes, along with Youth Open and Survivor entry fees, also will be processed during this time, and any tournament coordinator who was unable to conduct their event will have their entry fee refunded.
All scholarships and refunds will be completed by the end of April.
IBC Youth considered postponing the events, but once we looked at the uncertainties about when local quarantines will be lifted and the logistical factors of an event that covers a few weeks and numerous bowling centers, moving to other dates was not a viable option.
And, of course, bowling centers also have been greatly impacted. As mentioned, local qualifying events were canceled and, with centers having been closed for at least a month, athletes likely would have taken part in their biggest tournament of the year without the ability to practice and train.
“Everyone has seen how businesses have been hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic over the last month, and that includes bowling centers,” Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America Executive Director Frank DeSocio said. “Canceling the events has a financial impact on the centers but everyone understands protecting our communities is the goal. Hopefully, we are able to open our doors soon and get everyone back on the lanes.”
The qualifying season for the 2021 Junior Gold Championships still will kick off on May 1, 2020. IBC Youth Development encourages local coordinators to follow local guidelines before hosting a qualifying event.
Qualifying spots earned for the 2020 Junior Gold Championships and 2020 USA Bowling National Championships will not carry over to 2021 event. Age-division waivers will not be granted, and all athletes will be required to qualify in their appropriate age division during the 2020-2021 qualifying season.
The teams that qualified for the 2020 USA Bowling National Championships are considered champions for their region, and IBC Youth will ship your team its national jerseys.
Indianapolis will be the host city for the Junior Gold Championships, USA Bowling National Championships, Youth Open Championships and Survivor tournament in 2021.