THE sport of lawn bowls has taken a former nursery attendant Arun Kumar around the globe. Brought up in a farming community in Korovuto, Nadi, Kumar did not even know what lawn bowls was as a youngster.
Like many, the only sport he knew and played was soccer.
And it was a soccer injury that paved his way into bowls.
Kumar was an employee of the Regent of Fiji now known as the Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa.
He was an active sportsman and often played football in the company’s inter-department competition and the business house competitions.
In 1991, Kumar broke his leg during an inter-department tournament. The injury was serious and he had to spend six months at home.
Upon recovery, Kumar resumed employment but never touched soccer again.
It was the great Keshwa Gounder, who introduced him to bowls.
Gounder a champion player was part of the national triples team that had to settle for the silver medal at the 2008 World Championship after going down to Scotland 16-14 in the final.
The other players were Curtis Mar and Samuela Tui.
“I took up bowls in 1992,” Kumar said.
“My colleague Keshwa was an avid bowler. After I returned to work from the leg injury, he told me to try bowls. At first it was difficult because I could not get the lines right.
“I joined the business house bowls competition. At that time there were two experienced players and two non-experienced players that made up the team.
“Regent had all experienced players so they were after some non-experienced players so I came in.
“It took a while before I could settle in the sport and get my speed right.”
Kumar practised regularly and teamed up with Howard Yam to form a formidable combination. Yam was the catering manager for Regent at that time.
The duo won the Banana Cup, which is the national pairs championship at the Suva Bowling Club in 1994.
“We practised for a couple of weeks and won the tournament which was a morale booster,” he said.
“We won the Banana Cup at the same venue in 1996.”
With Kumar in top form, he was selected in the Fiji team to play Queensland in Australia in 1997.
The national side had players such as Ratish Lal, Babu Khan, Keshwa and Curtis.
Kumar did not play in the 2003 South Pacific Games in Suva because he was on holiday in the United States when the trails were called in 2002.
But a gold medal at the regional championship did not evade him as he was part of the national fours winning team at the 2007 SPG in Samoa.
He has represented the nation at the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia in 1998, England in 2002 and Scotland in 2014.
Kumar has been a regular member of the Fiji side that has participated at the Asia Pacific Games in New Zealand and Australia.
Since retirement, the 55-year-old now spends much of his time on the greens.
His next target is making the national side for the World Championship in Christchurch later this year.
He is part of the national training squad which is undergoing trials this month.
“I practise three times a week spending approximately 20 hours on the greens,” Kumar said.
“I’m trying my best to get into the national side for this year’s World Championship and the next Commonwealth Games.
“I think I have a few more years left in me to represent the country. Many people think that bowls is only for the oldies but it is not.
“Bowls requires precision which comes through a lot of practice and hard work. To be a good bowler, you have to practise regularly and participate in regular tournaments to test your skills.”
With many new players taking up the sport, Kumar says Bowls Fiji has a bright future.
“Not many sports can boast about sending players to a World Championship,” Kumar said.
“Bowls Fiji surely can. There are a lot of local tournaments as well which create a pathway to the national side to go abroad and do the country proud.”
Kumar holds a record of winning the Victa Clark Singles Championship title for four years in a row.
Profile
Name: Arun Kumar
Date of Birth: 10/01/61
Hobbies: Watching movies
Favourite food: Roti and curry
Favourite drink: Apple juice
Club: Sheraton
Model of bowls used: Aero dynamics
