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The QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup is a prestigious amateur singles event within the sport of 10-pin bowling, sanctioned by World Bowling and sponsored by QubicaAMF Worldwide. It is the largest annual international sports championship in terms of participating nations. Since its inception in 1965, this event has brought together champions from all over world so that players from small countries with few bowling facilities rub shoulders with the greats of the sport, all on equal terms and all in a spirit of friendly competition. Heads of state, members of royal families, government ministers, media personalities and renowned sportspeople have all been to the tournament and even tried their hands at bowling. Strong competition each year from potential hosts makes the selection of venue very tough – a state-of-the-art QubicaAMF bowling centre and good local backing are a must. The QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup has visited every continent, 41 cities in 31 different countries as of the 2015 edition.〔(What is the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup? )〕 ==1965 to 1968 'The International Masters'== 1965: The QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup began as a tournament called the International Masters, held on December 12, 1965 at the 12-lane Stillorgan Bowl, Dublin, Ireland. The tournament's three-day format (eventually becoming week-long) was modeled loosely after that used by the Professional Bowlers Association. Players had to bowl a total of 38 games which was based on the complicated Petersen Points system, which for this tournament was one point per pin scored, 50 bonus pins for a game won.()() 20 players took part in the inaugural tournament, with Tom Hathaway, Vittorio Noveletto and Richard Hall the favorites according to Irish bookmakers to capture the first ever International Masters, but a dental technician from Helsinki, Finland, Lauri Ajanto, surprised everyone. Ajanto, one of the top four going into the final day of play, won the title largely because Hall defeated his buddy Hathaway in a critical match in the final round. At the same time, the Finn struck on his final ball to go over the top. As Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs president and fellow Finn Kauko Ahlstrom embraced the champion, Hall sank to the bowlers' bench and wept. The QubicaAMF BWC was off and running.〔(1st International Masters )〕 1966: The second International Masters was staged at the grounds of world-famous Wembley Stadium, at Wembley Stadium Bowl in London, England. The tournament used the Petersen Points system from the previous year. 24 nations were represented, among them last year's champion Lauri Ajanto and last year's 3rd-place finisher Vittorio Noveletto. Ajanto finished 17th this time, while Noveletto was in contention for the title. Noveletto came up short but not without giving 19-year-old John Wilcox, later elected to the American Bowling Congress's Hall of Fame, a big scare. Heading into the last two game match, Wilcox led Noveletto by 241 pins. Noveletto defeated Wilcox in those last two games, 233-181 and 202-167, but he still fell 54 pins shy of taking the title.〔(2nd International Masters )〕 1967: The third International Masters was held at Bowling de Paris, an elegant 12-lane center in the French capital's massive central park known as Bois de Boulougne. 30 nations were represented, split into three squads of 10 players each. In each squad, all the players faced each other in two game matches with bonus pins to determine the top four. 12 bowlers would advance to a semifinal round, where the top four in pinfall here would advance to the final round. Jack Connaughton was number one after the semifinals, clinching the top position for the stepladder finals and needing only one win to clinch the title. In the finals, he defeated Kazou Hayashi 195-172 to make it two straight wins for the U.S.〔(3rd International Masters )〕 1968: The fourth International Masters moved across the Atlantic, to Guadalajara, Mexico. 35 nations would take part in the first International Masters held outside Europe. The U.S. was going for a three peat, but their representative, Jerry Steere finished 9th after leading earlier in the week. A locksmith, Fritz Blum, qualified second for the stepladder finals. Blum defeated hometown favorite Benny Corona in the semifinals and in the final, Blum cruised past top qualifier Jim Kramer in the two-game matchup, 385-334.〔(4th International Masters )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「History of QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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