Senior Team USA prepared to start competition at 2023 World Senior Championships in Colombia
December 06, 2023
ARLINGTON, Texas – After months of preparation, eight members of Senior Team USA are ready to start competition at the International Bowling Federation 2023 World Senior Championships, which will be contested at the sports complex in Cali, Colombia, from Dec. 7-14.
Official practice sessions will take place tomorrow with tournament play set to begin on Friday when women’s competitors take to the lanes for singles qualifying.
Men’s singles qualifying will follow on Saturday before the page turns to doubles competition, which will be held on Dec. 10-11 starting with women’s qualifying and concluding with the men.
Singles and doubles competition will end and medals will be awarded after the semifinals and finals are conducted in each event on Dec. 12.
Thereafter, the focus will be on team competition, which begins with men’s and women’s qualifying on Dec. 13 and wraps up with the semifinals and finals on Dec. 14.
The American roster features plenty of firepower as Chris Barnes of Denton, Texas; Tom Hess of Granger, Iowa; John Janawicz of Winter Haven, Florida; and Parker Bohn III of Jackson, New Jersey, comprise the men’s squad while Dana Ausec and Tish Johnson, both of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Sharon Powers of Lakewood, Colorado; and Jodi Woessner of Oregon, Ohio, will don the red, white and blue for the women.
The National Selection Committee chose those eight names from a long list of worthy applicants who sought to represent Senior Team USA at the 2023 World Senior Championships.
The squad’s efforts in Colombia will be guided by Team USA Coach Kelly Kulick, a United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer who also serves as the head coach of Junior Team USA.
Kulick has helped American bowlers author medal-winning performances all over the world, and she expects more of the same out of this immensely talented group of senior athletes.
“I am over the moon at the opportunity to travel with Senior Team USA and witness their true greatness as legends of the game,” Kulick said. “I have deep respect for their careers and achievements and know what they are capable of doing. I have high expectations that their greatness will shine, placing them on the podium multiple times.”
Historically, the Americans have fared quite well at the World Senior Championships; however, the 2021 trip to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, fell a bit short of expectations as Team USA came home with just one gold medal and five bronze.
The gold was secured by Hess, who made the most of his first opportunity donning the red, white and blue by winning the men’s singles event.
Although Hess was thrilled to win an individual gold medal during his first international competition, he was disappointed that the men’s team was unable to reach the podium in Dubai.
He’s hoping that he and Barnes, who also competed in 2021, will have the opportunity to erase the bad taste from two years ago and get back on top with the help of Bohn and Senior Team USA rookie Janawicz.
Authoring a strong performance the first time out is no easy task in international competition as, oftentimes, success or failure depends on whether or not a player can get into his or her comfort zone.
Thankfully, Ausec and Woessner should have a leg up in that regard while representing the Senior Team USA women.
Ausec should settle in quickly as she’ll be able to draw upon the support and guidance of Team USA veterans and fellow Coloradoans Johnson and Powers, with whom she frequently competes back home at league and in tournaments.
Woessner, on the other hand, will get comfortable by flashing back to the memories of the many times she’s come through in the clutch over the years while amassing a long list of impressive finishes in amateur and Professional Women’s Bowling Association competition.
However, while the goal, as always, is to win, according to Kulick, the 2023 World Senior Championships will go down as a successful tournament regardless of which teams and bowlers end up walking away with medals.
“This trip is already a success because we finally have a senior event with 21 countries competing, and all will be contenders,” Kulick said. “I will enjoy watching the best athletes display what they do best, which is display bowling greatness on the lanes and being ambassadors off the lanes.”
For more information on Senior Team USA, visit BOWL.com/Team-USA/Team-USA-Senior-Bowling.
Official practice sessions will take place tomorrow with tournament play set to begin on Friday when women’s competitors take to the lanes for singles qualifying.
Men’s singles qualifying will follow on Saturday before the page turns to doubles competition, which will be held on Dec. 10-11 starting with women’s qualifying and concluding with the men.
Singles and doubles competition will end and medals will be awarded after the semifinals and finals are conducted in each event on Dec. 12.
Thereafter, the focus will be on team competition, which begins with men’s and women’s qualifying on Dec. 13 and wraps up with the semifinals and finals on Dec. 14.
The American roster features plenty of firepower as Chris Barnes of Denton, Texas; Tom Hess of Granger, Iowa; John Janawicz of Winter Haven, Florida; and Parker Bohn III of Jackson, New Jersey, comprise the men’s squad while Dana Ausec and Tish Johnson, both of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Sharon Powers of Lakewood, Colorado; and Jodi Woessner of Oregon, Ohio, will don the red, white and blue for the women.
The National Selection Committee chose those eight names from a long list of worthy applicants who sought to represent Senior Team USA at the 2023 World Senior Championships.
The squad’s efforts in Colombia will be guided by Team USA Coach Kelly Kulick, a United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer who also serves as the head coach of Junior Team USA.
Kulick has helped American bowlers author medal-winning performances all over the world, and she expects more of the same out of this immensely talented group of senior athletes.
“I am over the moon at the opportunity to travel with Senior Team USA and witness their true greatness as legends of the game,” Kulick said. “I have deep respect for their careers and achievements and know what they are capable of doing. I have high expectations that their greatness will shine, placing them on the podium multiple times.”
Historically, the Americans have fared quite well at the World Senior Championships; however, the 2021 trip to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, fell a bit short of expectations as Team USA came home with just one gold medal and five bronze.
The gold was secured by Hess, who made the most of his first opportunity donning the red, white and blue by winning the men’s singles event.
Although Hess was thrilled to win an individual gold medal during his first international competition, he was disappointed that the men’s team was unable to reach the podium in Dubai.
He’s hoping that he and Barnes, who also competed in 2021, will have the opportunity to erase the bad taste from two years ago and get back on top with the help of Bohn and Senior Team USA rookie Janawicz.
Authoring a strong performance the first time out is no easy task in international competition as, oftentimes, success or failure depends on whether or not a player can get into his or her comfort zone.
Thankfully, Ausec and Woessner should have a leg up in that regard while representing the Senior Team USA women.
Ausec should settle in quickly as she’ll be able to draw upon the support and guidance of Team USA veterans and fellow Coloradoans Johnson and Powers, with whom she frequently competes back home at league and in tournaments.
Woessner, on the other hand, will get comfortable by flashing back to the memories of the many times she’s come through in the clutch over the years while amassing a long list of impressive finishes in amateur and Professional Women’s Bowling Association competition.
However, while the goal, as always, is to win, according to Kulick, the 2023 World Senior Championships will go down as a successful tournament regardless of which teams and bowlers end up walking away with medals.
“This trip is already a success because we finally have a senior event with 21 countries competing, and all will be contenders,” Kulick said. “I will enjoy watching the best athletes display what they do best, which is display bowling greatness on the lanes and being ambassadors off the lanes.”
For more information on Senior Team USA, visit BOWL.com/Team-USA/Team-USA-Senior-Bowling.