Four new world champions have been crowned at the 2025 World Bowls Junior Indoor Championship.
Joseph Clarke from Australia clinched the men’s singles, Ireland’s Lara Reaney gave the host nation – and club – plenty to celebrate winning the women’s singles and Briar Atkinson and Camron Horo chalked New Zealand’s maiden success in the mixed pairs.
Seven countries won medals at the four-day event at the Jim Baker Stadium, home to County Antrim IBC, Northern Ireland.
New Zealand was the best performing nation with a clutch of gold, silver and bronze medals.
Thirty-six players from 18 countries competed in the 26th edition of the championship – all under the age of 25 with the youngest being just 13 – Mikaela Ng from Singapore.
Co-sanctioned by World Bowls and the International Indoor Bowls Council (IIBC), the World Bowls Junior Indoor Championship, is the pinnacle global junior tournament.
Let’s take a look at how the titles were won in the order the finals were played:
MIXED PAIRS
There’s a new country on the World Bowls Junior Indoor Championship mixed pairs roll of honour – New Zealand thanks to 2025 champions Briar Atkinson and Camron Horo who lifted the Doreen and Alex Miskelly Trophy.
In what was Horo’s first appearance for his country, the duo staged an impressive campaign chalking up wins in all their group matches against Ireland, Ireland/Israel and Canada before coming out on top in two tiebreak deciders in the quarter-finals and semi-finals against Wales and Scotland respectively.
In the final, Atkinson, a member of the Paritutu and Oakura BC, and Horo, of Rahotu BC, returned a 7-2, 9-0 scorecard over the host nation’s Zoe Stratton and Daniel Spratt who they had also beaten during the sectional rounds.
Bronze medallists were Malaysia’s brother and sister Nurin Izzati and Muhammad Izraf and Scotland’s Leah McCloy and Stephen Lowrie – the Scots picking up their second consecutive bronze medal in this discipline.
The final was marked by Pauline Kirkpatrick and the umpire was Tony Hatch.
MEN’S SINGLES
Joseph Clarke from Australia won the Jimmy Davidson Men’s Singles Trophy.
The St John’s Park BC member from New South Wales was an 8-2, 7-3 winner against Scotland’s Stephen Lowrie, 25, who picked up his second medal of the day and second silver in this event having been runner-up to Robert Kirkwood in 2018 when the event was staged at his own club, Glasgow IBC.
Clarke who went through the whole men’s event without dropping a game is the third Aussie in succession to win the title – following in the footsteps of Nathan Black in 2023 and Kane Nelson 12 months ago.
Celebrating his 21st birthday on the opening day of the championship, Clarke is now the eighth Jackaroo to win the trophy with previous winners, including Mark Casey, Aron Sherriff, Ben Twist, Aaron Wilson and Aaron Teys.
Bronze medallists were New Zealand’s Camron Horo and Canada’s Erik Galipeau, a former mixed triples winner in this event in 2016.
Marker for the final was Bernie Hill and umpire was Malcolm Rammage.
WOMEN’S SINGLES
The host nation had plenty to celebrate when Lara Reaney won the women’s singles.
The 21-year-old County Antrim IBC member became the third Irish champion to lift the Hilary King MBE Trophy when she beat New Zealand’s Briar Atkinson 6-2, 4-3 ending the Kiwi’s hopes of becoming a double gold medallist already with the mixed pairs title under her belt.
Reaney, World Cup pairs bronze medallist last month, had lost to Atkinson, also aged 21, in the group games, with Atkinson, current World Bowls Series 13th ranked female player, having the kudos of not having lost a game until the final – the 190th match incidentally of the whole championship.
Bronze medallists were Scotland’s Leah McCloy and Hong Kong, China’s Abbie Chan.
Overseeing the final was marker Bob Penny and umpire was Dan McManus.
Presentations were made by World Bowls director Sue Beatt, International Indoor Bowls Council president Cath Harvey, Association of Irish Indoor Bowls president Rod Coleman and Irish Women’s Indoor Bowling Association president Roberta Tinsley.
International Indoor Bowls Council tournament director was Gordon Woods and Chief International Technical Officer was Neill Brice.
A special commemorative plaque was presented to County Antrim IBC manager Sarah Jane Coleman by Sue Beatt.
For scoring and tables: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Mdbqc7Ij_0NTToCa2OqNPjhADCtXAQCMFGdbSlTLJb8/edit?usp=sharing
Catch up on the streaming games: https://www.youtube.com/@world_bowls?sub_confirmation=1
https://www.youtube.com/live/thVYsdJuFWw?si=3A_JYbm6wwexIgTB
Caption: From left: Mixed pairs winners Camron Horo and Briar Atkinson (New Zealand), women’s singles winner Lara Reaney (Ireland) and men’s singles winner Joseph Clarke (Australia). Credit: Trevor Robinson Photography
Report compiled by Ceris Hewlings, World Bowls media officer
