The 14th annual edition of the Mediterranean Challenge Cup is to be played at the end of March.
The competition will be hosted by the Catalonian Tenpin Bowling Federation at the Pedralbes Centre, Barcelona.
A qualifying tournament has been held by the MTBA at the Eden SuperBowl to decide which four local bowlers would make up the team to represent Malta.
After a total of 24 games, the honours went to in-form Neil Sullivan and Mark Spiteri in the male division, with Sue Abela and Tiziana Carannante topping ladies’ stakes.
Based on recent winning form, Sullivan was clear favourite in the men’s event, although after eight games on day one he was second to Ray Falzon Reale’s 1,635 total, by just 11 pins on 1,624.
However, the third and final session saw Sullivan make sure of the top spot as he rolled off his best session of the tournament, adding a solid 1,690 to his tally for a final total of 4,921 (206.2 average).
He achieved this by shooting 200+ in six of the eight games, with highs of 232, 246 and 221 among his tally.
Mark Spiteri finished second to earn his place in the Barcelona championships with a 4,816 total as Falzon Reale had to settle for third place on 4,700.
In the women’s qualifying competition it was once again a question of who would claim the second qualifying position, with first place, inevitably, going to Abela.
Confirmation of Abela’s victory was a formality on day three when she shot a 1,595 set with top games of 224, 226 and 236, to finish on 4,738 (197.4 average).
Carannante secured second place with a 4,365 total.
Malta’s bowlers have consistently excelled throughout the history of the Mediterranean Challenge Cup, participating in all previous editions, and currently at the top of the medals standings, with no fewer than 26 golds from 13 events, ahead of nearest rivals Greece on 23 top awards.
To date the participation of ten federations has been confirmed at the Med. Challenge, namely, Catalonia, Cyprus, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Israel, Italy, Malta, Slovenia and Turkey.
The championships will be held over three separate qualifying events, those being singles, doubles (male and female) and foursomes.