Lauren Banks honoured with National selection
A report for The Mercury by Peter Kirby
Lauren Banks, a member of the New Norfolk Bowls Club, and a contracted player in Bowls Australia’s third tier Pathways Jackaroo program, has been provided with an intense competition experience with her selection as one of four Australian high-performance bowlers to vie for a world title at the Warilla Bowls Club, NSW, 7-13 May, participating in the mixed pairs event at the 2023 World Bowls Indoor Championships.
Lauren, with fellow Pathways Jackaroo, Grace Moloney, Para Jackaroo and Commonwealth Games silver medallist, Serena Bonnell, and Emerging Jackaroo Chloe Morrison will don the green and gold to team up with male athletes from nations that will not have a female representative. Lauren’s partner will be Fiji’s Zainal Mohommed, who has won an abundance of trophies nationally throughout the island nation.
Lauren has impressed on the national stage before, earning a silver medal in the Women’s Pairs at the Australian Championships just days after her 20th birthday, and also winning through to the 2022 Australian Indoor Championships. While still a junior in 2018, Lauren was the runner up in Bowls Australia’s prestigious Open Women’s Champion of Champions Singles.
Moloney, at just 20, has enjoyed a plethora of tournaments on the national stage that has pitted her against some of the world’s best on a regular basis. The South Australian will team up with Jamaica’s Martin Edwards, whose father Mervyn has represented the Caribbean Island nation in bowls at the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Bonnell, already well experienced at international level, will partner with Hungary’s Zoltan Pavelka, who recently represented the Eastern European nation at the 2022 World Champion of Champions tournament at Naenae Bowls Club, New Zealand. The 40-year-old will yet again emphasise the inclusive nature of bowls when she lines up in another open event, continuing to trail blaze on the international scene.
Morrison is a seasoned campaigner at the top level of Australia’s national events, performing with valour for the ACT throughout various blue ribbon tournaments across the country. The 24-year-old will be paired with Swedish bowler, Pontus Palmkvist, who bowls out of the Bondi Bowling Club in Sydney.
Bowls Australia’s National Coach Gary Willis is thrilled to see that some of Australia’s most talented female athletes will receive such a unique opportunity to take on the world’s best in a sensational international bowls event, which will be invaluable for their further development.
Australia’s representatives at the tournament will be Jackaroos, Aaron Sherriff and Kelsey Cottrell.