Page 29 - Winter 2017-18

Carpet 8:Layout 1 22-Dec-17 7:00 PM Page 1

Ageing Population 29

It is a commonly heard complaint that there are not enough young people coming into
the sport and that the participants are growing ever older, however this is something which
the Norwegians are not only not concerned about, but are positively embracing. The health
authorities there recognised that, with a population that is growing older, they need to consider
prevention rather than cure, and that means regular exercise and Carpet Bowls fits the bill.
Added to that is the fact that it is “low threshold”. Everyone can take part, it is free (thanks
to government support), mats can be rolled out anywhere and it provides older people with a
social network, which is very important at a time of life when people often find themselves
losing their partner.
European Bowls

The Norwegian initiative has led subsequently to interest from other countries, with Germany,
Denmark and even Latvia so far showing an interest, although it is still very early days. This
in turn has led to discussions regarding the instigation of a European Carpet Bowls Federation,
talks about which are ongoing, with the possibility of a meeting.
Again it should be stressed that the exact level of their involvement has yet to be finalised,
but if it happens this represents a very exciting step for Carpet Bowls. And of course it opens
up the possibility for something more formal in the way of international events in the future
with English Carpet Bowls working to do whatever is needed to try and make it happen.

A MESSAGE TO CARPET
A MESSAGE TO CARPET
BOWLERS EVERYWHERE
BOWLERS EVERYWHERE
I need your stories and news on these pages.
There is no staff only me and I have been pub-
lishing the magazine for over 25 years on my
own and I am delighted to cover Carpet Bowls,
which I regards as a very skilful game.
I would stress that my English is only av-
erage but with software that checks both it and

my spelling I can produce this magazine to a reasonable standard, check-
ing everyone else’s stories along the way.
I have “Ghost Written” a number of articles over the years with people
sending the details of their event along with photos of the winners and run-
ners-up and the scorecards for say the Quarter Finals onwards or the rel-
evant scoresheets.
No sport can really progress without publicity and shrinking numbers
is something that has sadly affected most forms of bowls. If you need to
know more please contact me for a chat and I can also send you a help

sheet for those who wish to write their own articles. I can attend some
events but not them all as the magazine runs on a “Shoestring” budget
and is not intended to make money, hence the very low subscription rate.
Bob Weafer Tel: 0121 - 286 - 9449
Email bobw@short-mat-magazine.com
This email will be changed in time but on the crossover to
covering carpet bowls it will remain as is for the time being.