Modutlwa, Kebapetse make World Bowls bow
Two local bowlers, Marea Modutlwa and Remmy Kebapetse will make a debut at the new World Bowls Indoor Championships to be held at the City and County of Bristol Indoor Bowling Club, England from April 25-29. The championships consist of men’s singles, women’s singles and mixed pairs disciplines. The competition is used to prepare for the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
The duo will also use the tournament as part of their preparations for the outdoor 2023 World Bowls Championships.
The event is new to World Championship for indoor bowls, with 64 star players from 27 countries across the globe. Modutlwa leaves on April 18 while Kebapetse follows on April 21.
“I and Kebapetse will play in the singles and we would then pair to play mixed doubles. Twenty-seven countries have confirmed participation. Last year, an expression of interest was released to players to say who is interested to participate in this competition. This is a new competition and it was not in our (Botswana Bowling Association) calendar of events as approved by Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC),” Modutlwa told Mmegi Sport.
Modutlwa said this means the competition is not sponsored by BNSC. She said whoever wanted to participate at the world championships was of the understanding that they would sponsor themselves. She said the World Bowls only committed to covering accommodation expenses.
“After the expression of interest was issued, eight men expressed interest and only four women showed up. Playoffs were held in December and Kebapetse won the men’s singles while I won the women’s tournament,” she said.
Modutlwa said as part of the preparations, the national team travelled to Cape Town for the Pairs tournament. She said in February, there was a Fours tournament at the Gaborone Club followed by another Major tournament in Francistown.
“We have weekly assessments that we do. We have a training programme given to us by coaches. We are both based in Gaborone so we can challenge each other in singles matches,” she said.
Modutlwa said there are different surfaces for bowls just like in tennis.
“This is an indoor competition, which is played on a carpet. It is different conditions and faster than we are used to. We had to adapt the way we play. From now onwards, we are focusing on the programme set up by coaches,” Modutlwa said.
Players’ fact files:
Full names: Marea Lephai Modutlwa
Date of birth: April 5, 1976
Make and model of bowls being used: Henselite Tiger
Achievements: Reigning national singles champion and current Peter Richards Pairs Champion from 2019. She has represented Botswana at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, the 2019 Atlantic Bowls Championships in Cardiff Wales, and qualified for the singles at the 2020 World Bowls Championships. She was also part of the team that won the gold medal in the Fours and silver in the Pairs disciplines at the 2019 African States Tournament in Kenya.
Full names: Remmy Phemelo Kebapetse
Date of birth: January 19, 1968
Make and model of bowls being used: Tiger Pro size 4
Achievements: He was part of the men’s team that was placed an excellent overall ninth out of 25 countries at the 2019 Atlantic Championships, where he secured a qualification spot in the men’s singles for the 2020 World Bowls Championships alongside England, Wales, South Africa, Jersey, and Kenya.
He boasts a lot of experience having represented Botswana at the New Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games and he was one of the quartets who won a bronze medal for Botswana at the 2009 World Tiger Bowls tournament in Hong Kong.