Gary Kelly (bowls)
 Kelly at the 2022 Commonwealth Games | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | British (Northern Irish) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 10 May 1989 Ballymoney, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Our Lady of Lourdes High School, Ballymoney | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | bowls | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Ballybrakes Community (indoors) Ballymoney BC / Warilla (outdoors) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest world ranking | 4 (August 2024)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Gary Kelly (born 10 May 1989) is an Australian based Northern Irish international indoor and lawn bowler.[2]
Bowls career
[edit]Outdoors
[edit]He won a bronze medal in the Men's singles at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.[3] In 2011 he won the pairs silver medal at the Atlantic Bowls Championships[4] and in 2015 he won the pairs gold medal at the Atlantic Bowls Championships.[5]
He won a silver medal for a combined Irish team with bowls pairs partner Ian McClure in the pairs at the 2016 World Outdoor Bowls Championship.[6]
In 2018, he was selected as part of the Northern Ireland team for the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in Queensland[7] and in 2020 he was selected for the 2020 World Outdoor Bowls Championship in Australia but the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8]
In addition to his international successes he also won the 2007 Irish National Bowls Championships singles.[9]
Kelly moved to Australia after the 2018 Commonwealth Games and won the delayed 2020 Australian triples title with Corey Wedlock and Brendan Aquilina at the Australian National Bowls Championships.[10] In 2022, he competed in the men's singles and the men's triples at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.[11] Later in 2022, he won his first title at the Australian Open[12] and also won the singles and triples at the European Bowls Championships.[13]
In 2023, he was selected as part of the team to represent Ireland at the 2023 World Outdoor Bowls Championship.[14] He participated in the men's singles and the men's pairs events.[15][16] In the pairs with Adam McKeown, they topped their group before going on to win the gold medal, defeating Australia in the final. One week later, in the singles he went on to win the silver medal after losing the final to Ryan Bester. Later in October, Kelly won the Australian Nationals pairs title with Corey Wedlock.[17]
In 2024, Kelly won the Australian Open fours title with Peter Taylor, Ray Pearse and Carl Healey, it was Kelly's second Australian Open title.[18]
Indoors
[edit]His first major success indoors came in 2019 after he defeated Brendan Aquilina in the final of the World Cup Singles.[19]
He was part of the winning trio that won the inaugural Ultimate Bowls Championship in April 2019 winning $60,000 AUD in prize money.
References
[edit]- ^ "Male rankings". World Bowls Series. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ "Gary Kelly". Henselite bowls.
- ^ "Commonwealth Games: Bowler Gary Kelly claims bronze after late heartache". Belfast Telegraph. 14 October 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
- ^ "2011 Atlantic Championships". World Bowls Ltd. Archived from the original on 31 October 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
- ^ "2015 Atlantic Championships". World Bowls. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
- ^ "2016 World Bowls Championship Finals". Burnside Bowling Club.
- ^ "Commonwealth Games 2018: Northern Ireland name 88-strong squad". BBC Sport. 3 January 2018.
- ^ "Ireland Team for World Bowls 2020". Irish Bowling Association.
- ^ "IBA Singles winners". Irish Bowls Association.
- ^ "NEW SOUTH WALES DOMINATE TRIPLES AT AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS". Bowls Australia. 24 May 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
- ^ "Official Games profile". 2022 Commonwealth Games. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
- ^ "2022 Australian Open: Day 13 wrap". Bowls Australia. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ "European Bowls Championships 2022T". Bowls Europe. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
- ^ "COMPETITORS CONFIRMED: WORLD BOWLS OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS 2023". Bowls International. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
- ^ "Events and Results, World Championships 2023 Gold Coast, Australia". World Bowls. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
- ^ "SCHEDULE & DRAWS". Bowls Australia. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
- ^ "Day 12 recap". Bowls Australia. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ "Day 13 recap". Bowls Australia. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ "World Cup indoor singles – Day 9". Bowls International.
External links
[edit]- Gary Kelly at the Commonwealth Games Federation (archived) (2010)
- Gary Kelly at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (archived)
- Gary Kelly at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games
- 1989 births
- Living people
- Male lawn bowls players from Northern Ireland
- Commonwealth Games medallists in lawn bowls
- Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Northern Ireland
- Bowls players at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
- Bowls players at the 2018 Commonwealth Games
- Bowls players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
- Medallists at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
- Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
- Bowls World Champions