2021 Australian Indoor Championships cancelled
The 2021 Australian Indoor Championships has been cancelled due to ongoing difficulties and uncertainty with border restrictions.
Originally slated to be played at Club Tweed from August 16-19 this year, the event was re-scheduled to take place from December 6-9 due to ongoing COVID restrictions in parts of the country.
Bowls Australia discussed the viability of staging the event at the postponed date, but decided to cancel the competition rather than postpone again due to an already busy calendar in the first half of 2022.
Despite this year’s instalment of the event not going ahead, players who qualified for the 2021 event will be invited to compete at the 2022 Championships.
Men’s and women’s fields will be extended for the 2022 Australian Indoor Championships, with 64 players to compete in each field respectively.
With the extended fields made up of 2021 and 2022 qualifiers, prizemoney will also double from $24,000 to $48,000, scaled to enable all players to collect winnings to help offset travel costs.
The event will also increase to five days, starting on Monday, August 15 and concluding on Friday, August 19, 2022, with finals to be televised.
“It is disappointing to have cancel another event, but we are excited about the opportunity that presents itself with this extended format,” Bowls Australia Events and Competitions Manager Andrew Howie said.
“We feel this option rewards the players who have won a number of games to qualify and now can be afforded the opportunity to compete while also meaning qualifying for the 2022 event can go ahead as planned.”
The 2022 Australian Championships is planned to take place at Club Tweed from Monday, August 15 to Friday, August 19, 2022.
