ABF TOUR TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS

The ABF Tour 2004 reaches its climax when it arrives in Jakarta at the Jaya Ancol Bowl from January 13-16 for the Grand Finals - the Tournament of Champions, where the top 16 men and top 16 women bowlers, based on the tour rankings, plus two wild cards in the men's division, will battle it out for glory.

Bowlers will compete in a round-robin first round on the first two days of the competition, at the end of which the top eight will advance to the exciting single-game elimination knock-out rounds. All the action from the knock-out stages will be televised live from 16:00, January 15-16 (Hong Kong/ Singapore time).

The inaugural Tournament of Champions (TOC) presents bowlers from eight countries making their debut appearance in TOC. Malaysian bowlers occupy ten spots in the TOC, closely followed by the Philippines which has seven bowlers appearing in the line-up.

It will be tough title battle for all as they will meet the challenge from a strong field which includes current Asian number ones Ahmed Shaheen of Qatar and Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia, last year's Asia's No. 1 ranked, Wu Siu Hong of Hong Kong and Liza Del Rosario of the Philippines. The list also include 40th AMF World Cup quarter finalists, Remy Ong of Singapore and ranking leader in the men's division, Chester King of the Philippines (pictured, right).

Surprises can also occur as seasoned campaigners like Jack Wong of Singapore, who is on a roll after capturing the recent ABF Tour Singapore leg and the Penang Pesta International. 2002 Asian Ranking Masters champion Jennifer Tan of Singapore is also the one to watch, especially after capturing the Penang Pesta International title in December.

Host, nation Indonesia has three challengers hoping to give the local fans something to cheer about when the tournament arrives at Ancol Bowl. Ranking leader in the women's division, Putty Armein (pictured, left) will surely give the women bowlers a run for their money, while her compatriot, Ryan Lalisang, scorer of the first and only perfect during the first leg in Malaysia, can pose a few problems too with his consistency.

The ABF Tour comprises six Legs and a Grand Final, the Tournament of Champions. Each Leg was staged with the top 16 men and 16 women bowlers from the preceding International Open Masters Event (Open Grade) competed in a one-game match play knock-out competition for the individual men's and women's titles.

The Tournament of Champions will be staged over four competition days where the top 16 men and 16 women bowlers (based on ABF Tour ranking points), plus two additional wildcard entries from the West Asia region (thus totaling 18 men in the men's division), will qualify to compete over four rounds of competition for the coveted men's and women's ABF Tour Champion titles.

The ABF Tour - Tournament of Champions will be televised live on Malaysia's Astro Supersport, Singapore's Starhub and Indonesia Metro TV. Highlights of the finals will also be televised later on local television stations of the six countries where the tour is being held. It will also be broadcast later in parts of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, China and Australasia with an estimated audience of around 90 million.

For further information and details please contact ABF Tour Committee Marketing and Event Management Division at Tel: (852) 2810 5191; Fax: (852) 28105192; Mr. Ritchie Lai (Mobile: (852) 93598669; email: ritchie.lai@tndgroup.com) or Mr. Kelvin Pong (Mobile: (852) 9100 0958; email: Kelvin.pong@tndgroup.com).
                                                                                                                              Terence Yaw

For further information, contact Keith Hale: keithhale679@aol.com