2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge attracts players from 38 countries including several PBA stars

The 5th Brunswick Euro Challenge, to be held from March 8 through 16, 2008 at Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin, is the richest event on the 2008 European Bowling Tour and certainly one of its real "major" tournaments.

According to Brunswick's Martina Jakobi, 446 players - 348 men and 98 women - from 38 countries have registered and there are only a few qualifying spots available from March 8-12. To find out which spots are available click on the BEC logo on the right menu bar.

The list of participants is a "Who is Who" of European bowling, but will be spearheaded by four PBA champions:

Brian Voss - the 1988 PBA Player of the Year is a 24-time PBA champion and was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 1994. Won at least one title in 12 straight seasons from 1987-1998 and is 4th on the all-time PBA career money list with more than 2,3 million Dollar in earnings.

Mika Koivuniemi - The 2003-04 PBA Player of the Year owns eight career Denny's PBA Tour titles including the 2000 Masters and the 2001 U.S. Open.

Sean Rash - Owns four career Denny’s PBA Tour titles including the 2008 USBC Masters. Became the first bowler in Tour history to win a title after qualifying for an event through the Denny’s PBA Tour Qualifying Round.

Michael Fagan - Won his first career PBA title this season when he teamed with Danny Wiseman to win the PBA Exempt Doubles Classic in Las Vegas.

Joining those four from the PBA side are exempt bowlers Chris Loschetter and Ronnie Russell as well as fellow Americans Alex Cavagnaro, Tim Mack, Mike Mullin, Mitchell Sacks, Mark Siders and Robert Spigner.

3-time Asian Games champion and 2-time World Champion Remy Ong (left) and his team mates Lee Yu-Wen, Benjamin Lim and Shaun Ng will represent Singapore in the BEC.

The women's field is by far the largest ever in the history of the European Bowling Tour.

Currently mere two entries shy of a three-digit number, the field features the best female amateur bowler in the world, Diandra Asbaty (right), and Missy Bellinder (below), both United States, one of three women, who have won a PBA regional event.

The Brunswick Euro Challenge offers total prize fund of 90,000 Euros (currently approx. $136,500) and offers special prizes that will be given in categories such as youth encouragement, "B" bowlers and ladies.

Plaza Bowling Saint Maximin is a 28-lane Brunswick-equipped facility located 40 kilometers north of Paris and close to Charles de Gaulle (CDG) international airport. The bowling center features Brunswick lanes, scoring, pinsetters, pins and lane maintenance. Plaza Bowling also offers ample room for spectators to view the entire tournament.

The 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge sponsored by Brunswick Bowling will be organized by Brunswick distributor Valcke Bowling.

In addition to sponsoring the event, Brunswick will be introducing new bowling balls such as the "Twisted Fury" and the "Ultra Zone" as well as a limited edition of the "Etoile - Reactive, a high performance bowling ball for the 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge.

In conjunction with the tournament, Valcke Bowling Service will organize and conduct drilling and pro shop seminars for players and customers.

Bowlingdigital will cover the event live from Paris with updates after each squad and round, respectively, and exclusive video footage commencing Thursday, March 13 all the way through to the finals on Sunday, March 16.