Letter from Thailand. Women World Championship

Well, here I am, home for 6 days and finally catching my breath and doing something which I don’t like: writing.
But as captain of the women USA Petanque team, I like to give all of our Petanque friends my version of the trip to Suphanburi, Thailand where the WWC. were held.

We all got to Bangkok on different days ( John and I had a wonderful time exploring this city and surroundings for a few days prior) but managed to meet at night, at a French restaurant before going the next day to Suphanburi. This evening was by itself quite anadventure, since upon arriving there, it had relocated. After walking, asking and finally at a police station asking for a taxi, we got there. We met the others , played boules ,ate and had a wonderful time. It was very hot however even at night , we noticed.

The next day we gathered at our Hotel, John had arranged in advance for transportation from there for the whole team, which was great. Mary Albright joined us.
During the 1hr and 30 min trip some of us tried to sew the MERI logo’s on our uniforms but we finished doing this in Cynthia’s room, among lot’s of talking ! But great fun.

Arriving in advance made registration etc. easier, not cooler, since air conditioning was kept to a minimum. The rooms were cool, fortunately.
Did I mention it was hot in Thailand?
This is very important to know since John found out that we were going to play outdoors! under a steel roof, so at least no sun.

Not allowed in the “stadium” (a 15 min. ride from the Hotel) we practiced next door to it in the full sun.

By the way, the food in the Hotel was mainly Thai (I have had enough for awhile) with some continental touches . At the “opening dinner” at a nearby Hotel ( much better than ours) there was a huge buffet , but with the same kind of problems encountered at our place: we don’t speak Thai, which created some confusion when ordering etc. All part of this adventure! At least we could follow the teams drawing on a big screen and in the mean time I caught up with some faces from other countries. We recognized each other from previous years. The Petanque world is wide spread, yet so small.

Up early the next day for Cynthia’s shooting contest, we were all there to encourage her from the side lines, while John was there to set up the balls for her. We were all proud of her and afterward John was happy and I think Cynthia felt the same way.

The “Opening ceremonies” followed. Lots of speeches by the Thai delegates but also a

Wonderful show with local boys performing as an acrobatic animal (dog?) on poles and jumping from pole to pole ( difficult to explain). Another performance was a snake like dragon being run around by young men, with long sticks. Very impressive.
A big marching band was on hand and the flags of each nation were paraded. I never tire walking behind the USA flag , but I think the whole team feels the same way about that.
Just to remind you, it was very hot during all of this!

As far as the Petanque, we were fortunate to play a lot of friendly teams, no problems except the language barrier at times .The referees did a great job explaining certain procedures . The games were timed. 1 hour and 2 “maines” after that. This was new for all of us and I have to admit it took some getting used to. There is no time to catch up after a slow start and that happened quite often.

The terrain was challenging and although John tried to help us with this problem, we did not improve fast enough. ( a big thanks to John, for everything)

We had good communication and lots of fun playing together and learned a lot which will be beneficial in the future.

Despite our results I will cherish this experience ,again and I hope my teammates will do the same. We did our best ,that’s all we can do.

In the meantime we saw some great Petanque being played.

The shooting contest won by Mrs. Papon was quite impressive and the finals between

Thailand and France (which was not timed) was wonderful . Thailand won and they certainly deserved it. Watching this , I think I drank 4 bottles of water, well you know :

It was hot out there! (last time)

The “farewell” party was a dinner, with Thai dancers, singers and a band as entertainment. The exchange of gifts was done and then the dancing started. Despite the average menu, ( according to other countries also) we all had a great time, new friends were made and believe me the FPUSA can be proud of this team in many ways.
We all got along ( thanks Mia and Cynthia) and Sandra, was a great 4th player,

My thanks to Mary Albright for watching all the games (I think she suffered the most from the heat) , Susan for her support and Mark for taking pictures.

I like to thank the Maine Boules Club for their financial support, also the Boule NY and

of course our sponsor MERI, because of you this trip has been unforgettable.

What an adventure!
Wishing all of you Happy Holidays and a great 2010!

Link to the Slide Show:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/Thailand#slideshow/5409355962549752034

 
Marieke Rolland,
Boca Petanque 2000 Club.

New FPUSA Suggestion Box!

A new way to bring in ideas to promote our favorite sport has been added! It is a suggestion box that resides on the FPUSA website.

You will see a link on the sidebar just to the right of this posting. Next time you have the "great idea lightbulb" go off in your head, share it with us. Maybe something good will happen because of it!

Wine Country Classic, Sonoma,CA.

Come Join The Valley of the Moon Petanque Club at the Wine Country Classic on October 17th and 18th 2009.

Random Doubles - A social alternative to the more competitive Wine Country Classic. There will be 2 separate tournaments held on Saturday & Sunday. Please join us for one or both days. Sign up online at www.vompc.org Small disclaimer, if interest is too low for one day or the other, we will have to consolidate for just the Sunday.

What: Random Doubles

When: October 17 & 18, 2009Where: VOMPC, Depot Park, Sonoma, Ca

Time: Sign-up by 9:00 am

Other: $10 per team Lunch is not included, however we will have aperitifs for all following the Final on Sunday evening.

Two Regionals in one great NYC weekend!

Hosting its first NE Region Tournaments the weekend of September 19 & 20, the New York Petanque Club, whose home terrain in Brooklyn's Prospect Park is perhaps the most difficult to play on East of the Mississippi River, had great cooperation from the weather and a wonderful turnout of some of the best players in the Northeast.

Combining two regional tournaments, singles on one day, doubles on the next, as a way to build attendance and make the weekend worthwhile, over 21 players brought their best game for Saturday's singles and 19 teams squared off for Sunday's doubles.

Players from five FPUSA clubs were in the mix and by Saturday's end, after some fancy boules work not often seen this side of the Atlantic (lots of carreaux and carefully picked données) the victors emerged:

First Place: Xavier Thibaud(NYPC), 2nd Place Philippe Hemery (LBNY), and 3rd Place jointly- Gilles Ray(NYPC) and Robert Dunn (LBNY).

On Sunday, another day of glorious weather made for a great picnic with many spectators joining the fun. A few roaming family pets reminded one that the provision in Art 15 of the rules about animal interference in games is there for good reason.

By day's end, with street lights coming on, and the score in the final game between Jean Pierre Subrenat and Eric Bertin, and Xavier Thibaud and Gilles Ray, all of NYPC, at 12-3 for JP and Eric, there was a pause to move to a better lit court. Et voila! There was a "sea change", Xavier and Gilles found their game and in 3 ends came up the victors, 13-12!

A more detailed and very well written description of the tournaments by Thierry Juillard (NYPC), with a fun accompanying video, can be found on the NYPC site.

World Championship in France

While you guys are playing in some petty tournaments such as "La Marseillaise" ... FPUSA International Events Coordinator, Robert C. Pierre, along with his son, Renaud, and a friend Laurent Scarabicchi, entered the 30th World Championship on August 22 and 23 in Cagnes sur Mer, France. Well, to be honest, we are talking of the "Championnat du Monde des boules carrées" ... in other words, square boules, which of course happen to be cubes.

Courts are 2 X 7 meters, and both boules and cochonnet are made of wood. One boule weighs 4 ounces, and the cochonnet 1/2 ounce. The latter must be thrown between 4 and 7 meters, but otherwise, all of the Petanque rules apply.

There were 132 Triplettes to start with, spread over the -very- steep streets of the "Haut de Cagnes", crowned by the 13th century Grimaldi castle (Monaco Prince family, and therefore Grace Kelly's as well ...). A very tough competition if you ask me, which absolutely everyone can enter, yet with some chances to win as the "square boules" have a tendancy to behave as they want. Even more so since the small and narrow streets of the haut de Cagnes are not only steep, but most of the time they are also cambered, and more than often, boules "roll" on edges and corners out of the court; and when playing downwards, be prepared to run after your boule which could frankly roll down across several courts !

Eventually, we didn't do so well and lost at the 3rd game; of the "consolante" ...

Of course as you will see in the video, it was not my fault as my cochonnet shooting was impeccable; well actually I was shooting at the boule, but all the same, we got the point!

If you are interested by the 31st World Championship of the "Boules Carrees" next August, get back to me for info. Maybe we could put together some FPUSA teams ?

—Robert C. PIERRE

---

FPUSA National Doubles, July 25-26

Three different tournaments, each with a consolante gave a full weekend of fun on the Lamorinda Petanque Club courts! Thirteen clubs sent players and Fresno topped the list with 10 of theirs on the courts each day!

Under the able direction of club president (and FPUSA VP) Mary Albright with the whole club helping out, Lamorinda showed they have the chops to put on a first class event. We even had a dignitary or two, most notably Jacques de Noray, Deputy French Consul in from San Francisco, who helped present awards.

Hosting their first Nationals on these courts, they didn't drop a stitch, every thing came off flawlessly and after the men's final ended Sunday evening and it was completely dark, they brought a couple of cars onto the terrain to light up the awards ceremony, raffle, and deeply appreciated and table filling apero.

The full-on Apero!

All 22 of their courts were in use, most with tournament matches, the others for practice and pickup games. Under the mid-afternoon sun, all were grateful for the shade from the pear and apple trees remaining from an old fruit orchard.

(the "mixed" see below for names)

The courts are devilishly difficult, but great fun to play, with small undulations and hard and soft spots abounding. Ends were often won with points two feet away, and shooters had to hit "au fer" or several feet in front so the boule could settle down before it contacted its target.

(here are 1st & 2nd Women's winners, apologies for not having photo of 3rd place Teri & Lisa)

Saturday evening's BBQ buffet was a delight with some Texas style beef and chicken served with wonderful beans and plenty of sauce.

It was great to see Louis Toulon, too. He and Max took first in the men's consolante!

(and with Monique Martin in a walking cast, she and Dolly Ebollito took 4th in the Women's !)

In 90 degree heat one looks for shade and finds it on these courts.

RESULTS:

SATURDAY- MIXED DOUBLES- 20 TEAMS

First Place RAYMOND & PIM NIELSEN (Boule d'Or) Second Place PETER MATHIS & HOLLY SAMMONS (VOMPC)

Third Place JOHN AND TISH HARRIS (Oakhurst) Fourth Place BOB CORTRIGHT (PPC) & EMILY ETCHEVERRY (LPM)

SUNDAY- WOMEN'S DOUBLES- 13 TEAMS

First Place ANTONIA CHAVEZ (VOMPC) & PIM NIELSEN (Boule d"or) Second Place NARIN GARRETT & HOLLY SAMMONS (both VOMPC) Third Place TERI SIRICO (PVPC) & LISA VAUGHN (VOMPC) Fourth Place DOLLY EBOLITTO & MONIQUE MARTIN (both LBJ)

MEN'S DOUBLES- 21 TEAMS

First Place RAYMOND NIELSEN (Boule d'Or) & ALAIN GUSELLA (CFdS) Second Place PETER MATHIS (VOMPC) & MICKEY COUGHLIN (Willits Boules Club) Third Place JER THAO & BY VANG (both Fresno Petanque Club) Fourth Place JOE & BOB CORTRIGHT (both PPC)

Our players in Dronero, Italy, July 24-27

Don't these guys look familiar? (left to right, Jean-Pierre Subrenat, Peter Crowley, and Xavier Thibaud, all New York players)

They are in Dronero, competing in the major petanque tournament in Italy, the 9th Epaci Occitan, with teams from Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. Even "Le Grand Marco" was there defending his previous victories at this event.

Robert Pierre , our International Events Coordinator, there as a both coach and player, tells us that try as they did in both doubles and triples combinations, they weren't able to qualify for the concours by getting out of the pools. Robert, playing with his summer club from Cagnes sur Mer, did manage to get into the concours, but elimination followed.

However, in a pre tournament demonstration game, the team above did fanny Belgium. That is something to brag about.

Robert also reminds us that there is still an opportunity to play in "La Nismoise", either in a doubles or triples combination. see the posting just below.

Last Chance for Nismoise!

Our international events coordinator, Robert Pierre, reports from Dronero, Italy, where he is playing on a team with Jean-Pierre Subrenat, Xavier Thibaud, and Peter Crowley, that he just met with the President of "Fanny Nismoise Petanque Club" in Nismoise, Belgium who tells Robert he would welcome a US team as a guest at the "La Nismoise" tournament, August 21-23, less than a month away.

Robert played in this tournament last year and highly recommends it to capable players. If your schedule permits it, and you'd like to be considered for this opportunity, please contact Robert immediately. It could be the highlight of your summer!

La Marsellaise - Montreal, CA.

La Marsellaise was Played in North America in The City of Longueuil just West of Montreal.
This was a must Do Tournament, the Atmosphere was perfect for Petanque and meeting some Great new People plus it helps when You have Friends in Canada like Claude Lopez that let us stay at his House and Serve as a Tour Guide on the last day of our Visit. I also meet many other Friends that come down to Florida to warm up during the Winter.
Three Teams from the FPUSA signed up for the Tournament and Two of them made it to the Round of Sixteen.
They Sure put up a Show with the Men's Semi-Finals and Final and The Women's Final. Accurate shooting was the name of Game, just one hit after another and the Game was decided on the final crazy Play that left everyone shocked, on a tied Game 9-9 and with a Tight group of 4 Boules all about 10 inches apart the point was for the Laulhe's Family with a single Boule and the other Team had 3 boules surrounding the Point with the last boule in hand Youssef shoots and Carreaus perfectly staying in place and making 4 points to WIN 13-9.

I took lots of Pictures, Just follow the Link.


http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/LaMarsellaiseMontreal#

Bastille Day - Miami -

The Biltmore Hotel in the center of Miami celebrated Bastille Day on Tuesday July 14th with Dinner and Petanque. This is our Home Courts for now, it is definitely a beautiful place to play and meet people and the way is going we already have three Teams that are planning to go to the Petanque America Open 2009 in Amelia Island, FL. http://petanque-america-open.com/ and further more a Miami Petanque Club for 2010.

"The Americans" in Marseille

Though the finals in the Marseillaise won't have any of our players in them, we do know that our own Xavier Thibaud and his team progressed to the eighth finals, putting him in the top sixteen out of almost 4600 teams in the competition.

This is the farthest an American citizen has ever progressed and we are happy to be basking in his success. Xavier, a resident of NYC and member of the New York Petanque Club, reports that he was proud the French press referred to him as "The American".

Xavier and his two teammates, Andre Lozano, and J.F. "Tichon" Hemon, both former world champions, won 10 games out of the 13 that will be played in this year's Marseillaise. An astounding feat! The score in their last game was 11-13, so close it could have gone either way!

We also report on the success of our other players in this, the largest tournament in the world. Alec Stone-Sweet tells us he made it to the 7th game before being converted to a tourist, and we are told that Ernesto Santos and Yngve Biltsted, LBNY, playing on one team, and Robert Pierre, playing with a team from his home town, Cagnes sur Mer, all made it to their second game, putting them in the top 50% of the teams in Parc Borely, Marseille.

For those who have followed the video stream of the games, it has been a fun week and a wonderful opportunity to see the great players of the world and imagine ourselves pointing and shooting with the best of them.

(photos courtesy of LBNY and Boulistenaute)

The Marseilaise-4,592+ to 2 in a dozen games

One of our best players, Alec Stone Sweet, is once again in the milieu of the Marseillaise, probably the largest tournament in the world and certainly the best known.

It is single elimination from the very first game, and Alec tells us that after he and his team won their first three games on Sunday, fewer than 600 teams remain out of the almost 4600 (that is nearly 14,000 players) that began the tournament. Doing the math tells us that it will take winning another 10 or so games to end up the supreme champions of this grand event. But Alec has progressed to game 6 in 2006, so don't be surprised if he gets to game 9 in 2009, or farther, even.

Our International Events Coordinator, Robert Pierre, is also entered on a team from Cagnes sur Mer, though we haven't had a report from him, yet.

Looking for more on the Marseillaise? Try www.boulistenaute.com You'll read interviews with Alec there and get a sense that this is a grueling, tiring tournament and for only for the most competitive players. But, winning or even placing well in the Marseillaise is a reward like no other.

Photos courtesy of Boulistenaute.com

FPUSA NW Regional Triples and Singles a big success!

This past weekend players from around the FPUSA'S NW Region were on the Portland Petanque Club's terrain trying to prove they had better game than any of their opponents.

Thirteen triples teams and 26 singles players competed during the weekend in a very successful event organized by Tournament Director Albyn Jones, and supported by player volunteers gathered by PPC club president, Philippe Agnesse.

We enjoyed a wonderful Saturday evening buffet under the twilight skies and took to the courts afterwards for pickup games to keep our edge for the next day's singles tournament.

NW Region Triples winners: Left to Right Pierre Brun, Hugh Gallagher, Daniel Andre(3rd Place, PPC), Greg Conyers, John Hunt, Lee Harris (2nd Place, Seattle Petanque), Thai Nguyen, Pierre and Philippe Agnesse (1st Place, PPC),

in front, FPUSA President Joe Martin and Tournament Director Albyn Jones.

NW Region Singles winners, L to R, Albyn Jones Tournament Director, Duong Nguyen (3rd Place, Seattle, Joe Cortright (1st Place, PPC), Philippe Agnesse (2nd Place, PPC) & Thai Nguyen (4th Place, PPC)

And what is a tournament without a banquet?!

Play in the "Fanny Nismoise" August 21-23!

Robert Pierre, our International Events Coordinator, has successfully secured a spot for an FPUSA triples team to enter the well known "Fanny Nismoise" tournament in Nismes, Belgium, August 21-23, 2009.

It was last held in 2007 and 11 countries, including ours, competed. As the extract from the web page shows, it is a nice affair in a pretty setting. On Sunday, there is also an open select doubles.

Nismes is about a 2 hour drive from either Paris or Brussels.

If you are a current FPUSA license holder and are interested in joining the team, please contact Robert for further information.

PS to enlarge the web extract, just click on it.

Three National Tournaments in One Weekend!

The Lamorinda Petanque Club in Lafayette, California, welcomes you to three tournaments all on the weekend of July 25th and 26th!

The National Mixed Doubles on Saturday the 25th, and on Sunday the 26th, the National Men's Doubles and the National Women's doubles!

Set in an old pear orchard on a terrain that flows around trees and boundaries, it offers a weekend of challenge and fun!

And on Saturday evening enjoy a catered BBQ dinner that includes your favorite smoke cooked meats with all the fixin's and all beverages, too!

Read on for the entry forms, meal reservations, and hotel and direction info.

Click on the images to enlarge them.

Any questions, please contact: Mary Albright, or Brian Murphy

Hope to see you there!

The Marseillaise in Canada!

This is the second year of the Canadian version of the Marseillaise! It was a grand success last year, with over 75 teams competing, 4 or 5 from the U.S.

A couple of U.S. teams finished in the money last year owing to them running a couple of consolantes in addition to the Concours. The Concours was won by an excellent Canadian triplette, headed up by Yanick Laulhé, one of the sons of Claude Laulhé, a five time member of Canada's world's team.

This year it is in Longueuil, just next to Montreal, July 16-19.

(click on poster to enlarge)

One can look forward to a very well run event. It is an "open' tournament, anyone can participate. Expect the level of play to be high. A couple of lunches and a dinner are included, as are samples from Ricard of their popular beverage. Oh yes, there is prize money, too!

Website is www.pre-mondial-ricard.com and email is micheltargiroff@hotmail.com

THE HEART OF TEXAS PETANQUE CLUB TOURNAMENT

Hello everyone ,I am proud to say that the first tournament organized by THE HEART OF TEXAS PETANQUE CLUB was won by the club itself and the beautiful cup that Thierry Amisse made will remain as a trophy in Austin, TX where the club resides until it will be put back in competition the next time the club will again organize a tournament

The GOLD: winner representatives of the club were Amine Najah and Arsene Dupin

There is so much to say about today and how organically the tournament came together So the first thing to do is to say Thank you to all of you who came and participated and every one's support whether you were there or not Also, one of the major contributors to a magnificent success today was -the Weather It didn't rain on us during the entire tournament in the mist of every weatherman predicting rain today I think because of the goodness of those smiling faces coming together to one of the greatest games on this planet ,the heavens opened up the sun for us

People came as far as San Antonio 4 teams of great players one of them took SILVER : Michel Costa and Patrick Lanchais and two other members also from The HEART OF TEXAS PETANQUE CLUB Jacques and Spiros Petratos took BRONZE We had 2 great official referees Rick Armstrong and Jerome Potts A+ LOVE Arsene

By Arsene Dupin

Update on Summer Events in Europe

International Events Coordinator, Robert Pierre, also from the venerable FPUSA Southwestern Region, sent us this update (interesting enough to be posted verbatim):

“Luckily enough, a request from John Krauer made me do some research about Zurich. Here is the outcome:

La Pétanque en Suisse : Pas de Grand Prix International de Zurich 2009 !

Posté par jovial5 le 21/4/2009 20:10:00 (240 lectures) Articles du même auteur

Des circonstances indépendantes de sa volonté obligent le Comité d'organisation d'annuler le Grand Prix International de Zurich qui aurait dû se dérouler en août prochain...
La Ville de Zurich entreprend jusqu'en été des travaux de réaménagement dans le parc de la Josefwiese, qui seront achevés dans la seconde moitié de l'été. Comme il n'est pas possible à l'heure actuelle d'évaluer la place et les installations qui seront disponibles alors, le Comité d'organisation du Grand Prix a dû se résoudre à annuler la manifestation cette année.
Nous présentons sincèrement toutes nos excuses aux boulistes de Suisse, France, Allemagne, Autriche, Europe de l'Est, Espagne, Italie, Grande-Bretagne, Israël, Etats-Unis… qui avaient prévu de nous rendre visite cet été.
Il faudra donc patienter jusqu'en août 2010 pour que se déroule la 40e édition du Grand Prix International de Zurich.
D'ici-là, le Comité du GPI ZH vous souhaite une belle saison estivale et se réjouit de vous retrouver nombreux et en pleine forme en 2010 sur les terrains de la Josefwiese à Zurich.
Sportivement vôtre,
Le Comité<...

In short, no Zurich this year.”

Breeding like coat hangers!

Turn your back for a second and another petanque terrain appears, like coat hangers breeding in a closet!




This little beauty of a California terrain is home to the Petaluma Valley Petanque Club.



You can do the same with 80 yards of gravel ( about 6-7 big dump truck loads) and a nice front end loader with a box or blade on the back.

WWCQT Winners in the Paper

The Winners of the WWCQT that will Represent the USA in the upcoming Women World Championship appeared in the Local Sun Sentinel Newspaper.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/community/news/palmbeach/sfl-flcnspdigestpb0412psapr12,0,4709690.story

Boca petanque star to represent U.S. at world finals

By Cynthia Thuma

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Boca Raton's Marieke Rolland will again be a world traveler later this year.Rolland has been selected to represent the United States for the third time at the Women's Petanque World Championships in Thailand Nov. 13-15.
Petanque is a sport resembling lawn bowling and bocce that's very popular in Europe, South America and Asia, and is rapidly gaining interest elsewhere. Rolland already has competed internationally in Canada and France.In November, she'll be part of a team with Mia Kanazawa and Cynthia Stroud, who also qualified for worlds from the United States National Women's Team and are members of the Maine Petanque Club. The three earned the honor by virtue of their performance April 4-5 at Lawton Chiles Park in Delray Beach.Rolland and her teammates broke from an 11-all tie in the championship match of the qualifier to defeat Diana Jacobs, Sandra Bonneville and Antonia Chavez from the Los Angeles Petanque Club and earn the trip overseas."We were lucky enough to put the last balls in to win 15-11," she said. "It's such a great thing to represent [our country] at an event such as this. People ask for autographs and you feel like such a big shot."Still, Rolland says, she wouldn't mind a bit more support — the kind athletes in some of the better-known sports receive."Our organization [Federation of Petanque USA] gives us our uniforms and some prize money, but they can't do much more," she said. "My teammates are talking about doing bake sales to make extra money for the trip."Rolland, whose husband John started the Boca Petanque 2000 club she competes for and is the former president of the federation, said she is especially happy for her teammates, who battled through considerable adversity to win. Their club is the only petanque club in Maine."We have a lot of members, 50, maybe 55, but they did what they did on their own," she said. "There are not too many people, not too much competition there, but it'll be a big deal when they get home. They'll have champagne all over them."Americans generally do not fare that well on the international stage, leaving U.S. team members feeling a bit like Jamaican bobsledders."Exactly," she said. "That's us in the petanque world, but still, it's the Olympic Games for our sport, with 40 countries represented. It's all red, white and blue for us."

Play Pétanque in Europe This Summer!

Our International Events Coordinator, Robert Pierre, sent an update to the previous post on this subject...

"I've just been informed that Dronero is now "off," since they will host one USA team only this year, but Vienna, Austria, EuroPétanque, Nice, France, and Zurich, Switzerland, are still open. And in case there would be individuals, they still can register with me and I'll see if it is possible to build up teams. Besides, I am always available to join a team if need be. It would really be a pity not to enter one team at the EuroPétanque this year."

So... those of you with the means and skill... why not plan to join the mix in Europe this summer? Contact Robert Pierre at rcpierresq@hotmail.com, today!

Petanque at the Biltmore, FL.

Today was the first Tournament of a series of Tournaments held on every Tuesday Evening at the Beautiful Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables Fl. right in the center of Miami for the next couple of months. Play will Begin at 6:00 pm until around 8:30 pm.

All Players welcome, New and Experienced, a great way of meeting new friends and have a great time at the same time. Mario Olivieri is organizing the event so it will be running smoothly.

WWCQT - Tournament - Boca Raton, FL.

Boca Petanque Hosted the Women World Championship Qualifier Tournament this past weekend, and it was a Success!

After the Dust settled on the two Hot and Sunny Days even for us Floridians the outcome was as follow:

Gold: Mia Kanazawa, Cynthia Stroud, Marieke Rolland.

Silver: Diana Jacobs, Sandra Bonneville, Antonia Chavez.

Bronze: Narin Garrett, Erin Mc Taggart, Barbara Hall.

Outstanding Competition and Sportsmanship from All Players.

Enjoy the Pictures!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/WWCQT#

SE Regional Mixed Tournaments

SE Regional Mixed Doubles

1--Jackie Plessas, Juan Garcia

2--Monique Gaudet, Claude Lauhle

3--Marieke Rolland , Alex Canesse

SE Regional Mixed Triples

1-- Marieke Rolland, John Rolland , Claude Lauhle

2--Pat Lallinec, Claude Lopez, Gerard Reuther

3--Joe Ella Manalan, Jean Jacques Baudo, Raymond Fulconis

Just a crazy weekend, full day of Rain sometimes very heavy on Saturday and a Hot and Sunny day on Sunday.

SE Singles and Doubles

SE Regional Singles Tournament

1st Gilles Canesse

2nd Juan Garcia

3rd Salem

SE Regional Doubles Tournament

1st Claude Laulhe, Marc Vedrines

2nd Jean Jacques, Pascal Rouillon

3rd Roger Arpaia, Ben Gauthier

Saturday was the day for the Singles Championship, with a total of 15 Players 14 Men and one Petite Woman (Raquel Garcia) but as I said, a good learning experience. This day was perfect weather wise with a Pizza party at the Pavilion at the end of the day with a Raffle and Lots of Prizes with the proceeds to go towards the Juniors for the World Championship.

Sunday morning was a different story since overnight we had a cold front coming in and no one liked the soaking rain that hit us several times during the day.

I have to say something about Marinette, she reminds me of the Wolf dressed as the sweet old Lady from the famous children story. She outpointed me effortlessly on our quarter final match, I as trying hard to make a good point on these difficult Sarasota Courts and she will beat me time and time again without even trying sometimes I thought she was playing with Her Eyes closed.

The Doubles Final ended up being played at the dirt parking lot under the Lights.

No Doubt about it, this was another Successful Petanque Tournament Weekend.

SEE THE PICTURES:

http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/SE_Singles

See the world, play petanque!

Our fellow boulistes in Fresno, CA, who make up the fastest growing club in the country, are trying out the idea, as other clubs have, of combining sightseeing in Europe with the opportunity to make new friends with the petanque playing locals in their sister city of Muenster, Germany.

We've all heard that German players are devotees of the game and the Fresnans are hoping to learn a few tricks and perhaps impart some of their own. Maybe they will even get into a few pickup games at their other stops. We look forward to hearing of their experiences in a few months.

Huge petanque tournament in Valleyfield, Quebec

Our good friend and player, Roger Arpaia, of the Boca 2000 club is president this year of the Festival of Petanque of Salaberry de Valleyfield in Quebec, about 50 miles SW of Montreal.

To our amazement, we have learned that there are 72 gravel courts which are the site every year of a nine day series of competitions, 25 July through 2 August.

There are A and B class tournaments to accommodate players of all skill levels and qualifications. No doubt some of the 9 different tournaments are for holders of Canadian federation licenses, but Roger emphasizes their welcome extends to Americans, too, so there will be spots for all entrants. Entry fees and prizes vary according to tournament. Camping is available, too.

This is as close to a "petanque immersion" as one can imagine, don't you think?

Complete information is available on the petanque club's website:
http://www.clubpetanque.suroit.com/

Roger can be contacted for details and questions: rarpaia@hotmail.com

Qualifying Tournament for World Women's Team

Here is the entry form and relevant information for Women's teams interested to compete in the Qualifying Tournament in Boca Raton, Florida, April 4-5, 2009.

Unfortunately, there are as of now no precise dates or city set for the World Championship which is scheduled for September in China. However, all contestants are advised that they must attend the World Championship in China this September if they win the competition. Any questions should be directed to Sport Director, Ed Porto, edporto@sbcglobal.net

(click on image to enlarge)

Nationals - Singles/Mixed Triples

The weekend started with a large group of Petanquers getting together Friday afternoon at the Boca 2000 Petanque Courts for practice. I was a little late since I had to pick up Mamary at the Miami Airport and Erin in the Fort Lauderdale area on my way to Boca Raton but this is what Friends are for.
Saturday morning we all gather for the National Men and Women National Tournaments.
There were a total of 22 Men and 6 Women Ready to Battle with three Boules each. We had Players From Valley of the Moon Petanque Club in Sonoma, Maine Boules Club with a total of six Great Players, the newly organized "New York Petanque Club", Philadelphia and From Seaside, Sarasota, Orlando, Lakeworth, Boca Raton and Miami in Florida.
After the Dust settled the results were as Follow:

Single Women:

1st Mia Kanazawa.
2nd Cynthia Stroud.
3rd Erin Mc Taggart

Single men:

1st Mamary Coulibaly.
2nd Xavier Thibaud.
3rd Roger Arpaia

Mixed Triples:

1st Xavier Thibaud, Jean Pierre Subrenat, Erin McTaggart.
2nd Gloria Bergeron, Aaron Kianofsky, Mamary Coulibaly.
3rd Monique Gaudet, Elie o'hayon, Michel Robichaud.

Special recognition goes to Aaron Kianofsky ( crowd favorite) for his constant Smile and sense of humor PLUS unbelievable Pointing and Shooting and His Partner Gloria Bergeron that won Her first Medal in FPUSA and it had to be 2nd Place in a National Tournament. She also Played like a Pro. Congratulations!.

Click on the Link For the Full Album of Pictures.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/National_SinglesMixedTriples

National Singles and Mixed Triples

Welcome to some Good Weather and a lot of Competition at the Courts of Boca 2000 Petanque Club in Boca Raton, FL. for The National Men and Women's Singles Tournaments on Saturday February 20th and The National Mixed Triples the Following day on Sunday February 21st.

For a ten Day Weather Forecast of the Area Click on the Link below.

http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/USFL0040?from=36hr_topnav_undeclared

For Further Information Contact our Boca 2000 Club President:

John Rolland

5788 Wind Drift lane, Boca Raton, Fl 33433

jmrol@comcast.net

Cell: 954-425-2646.

Play in Europe this year!

Our International Events Coordinator, Robert Pierre, gives us an initial list of European tournaments for players to consider entering.

Last year, our players participated in five competitions in various parts of Europe and all report a very positive experience. Nothing improves our game like playing with the best!


These first four so far for this year include some subsidy or grant for rooms and meals to one or more official FPUSA teams. Sounds like fun doesn't it, defending our colors in some wonderful settings and enjoying a free room and/or meals while doing it?

Being selected for an official FPUSA team entails applying to Robert C PIERRE
(RCPIERREsq@hotmail.com)(individuals or complete teams) before the deadline mentioned for each tournament. Selected teams will wear FPUSA colors and will be notified of their selection by the FPUSA Sport Committee within 10 days after the deadline.

Vienna, Austria, June 12th thru 14th, Select Doublettes, accomodation provided for 1, possibly 2 Teams.
Dead line to apply:5/1/09

EuroPétanque, Nice, France, July 17th thru 20th, Select Triplettes, hotel and lunches provided for 2 Teams.
Dead line to apply: 5/29/09


Dronero, northern Italy, July 24th thru 27th, Select Doublettes and Triplettes, full board provided for 2 Teams.
Dead line to apply: 6/5/09

Zurich, Switzerland, August 14th thru 17th (to be confirmed), Select Triplettes and Doublettes, lump sum per player covering 2 hotel nights.
Dead line to apply: 6/26/09
(photos courtesy of Boulistenaute.com)

From the Southwest...

Southern California club member, and global pétanque ambassador, Robert C. Pierre, sends us this news update:

Club members might be interested to participate in a
Four-Day Pétanque and Belote Stay on the Costa Brava in Spain,
a 30 mile drive from the French border, along the Mediterranean coast.

This trip is organized every year by a club based in Nice. It is informal, and everyone is welcome.

This year, two dates are featured:

June 8th thru 12th, and October 12th thru 16th.

Prices include full board at the Tahiti Playa Hotel www.tahitiplaya.com

Pétanque tournaments include, for Men and for Women: singles (limited to 256 men and 64 women on a first registered basis), Doublettes Mêlée, and Select Doublettes. A Triplette Mêlée Générale is also organized, including both Men and Women.

There will be also Belote tournaments.

PRICES:

€ 162 per person based on double rooms.
Add € 48 for a single room.
Kids 2 to 10: 50% discount
Additional nights: € 36; add € 12 for a single room.

Deadline to register:
2/13/09 for June,
7/15/09 for October

Inquiry: RCPIERREsq@hotmail.com

Petanque America OPEN 2009

I talked to Philippe from Petanque America today, to get more Info on the upcoming "Petanque America Tournament" for November 2009.

Nothing is carved in Stone yet since this is only in the developing stages, much planning and organizing in the next couple of months. He mention that He should have more details some time in March.

But for now the Plans are for a Doubles Tournament, Mid November 2009 in Amelia Island ( NE Florida) by Jacksonville. http://www.ameliaisland.com/ , He is expecting over 100 Teams from all over the US and Abroad.

All I can say is that it Sounds like a lot of FUN in a Beautiful setting . Just like in 2003 and 2005 Philippe knows how to Organize a Large Tournament and get all the logistics together for a common GOAL ( Play Petanque and Have a Good Time).

Visit his Blog for some interesting Info http://petanqueamericaopen.blogspot.com/ and leave a comment, let Him know what You think.

SE Regional Triples - RESULTS -

This First time ever Melee Triples was a success!. Players of different levels got together to Play Petanque on Saturday morning.
On a personal note I would like to report that John Wildner was very happy to Win his first FPUSA Medal, He started playing over a year ago and now He's playing like a champ and this is what's all about with the Melee Tournament.
John Roland, Boca 2000 Club President was missed all weekend due to that he was sick and You know that He had to be feeling really bad to NOT Play on these two Tournaments. But He now feels much Better.
Good Competition with quality Teams was what the Sunday SE Regional Triples was all about.
We all had plenty of Fun, it's always great to meet with our Friends and Play our Favorite Game.

SE Regional Melee Triples

1st Roger Arpaia; Pierre Gaudet; Suzanne Gautier

2nd Juan Garcia; Michel Deschappes; John Wildner

3rd Michel Robichaud; Michel Cazenave; Monique Gaudet

SE Regional Formed Triples

1st Gilles Canesse; Alex Canesse; Juan Garcia

2nd Roger Arpaia; Claude Lopez; Michel Cazenave

3rd Jean Jacques Baudo; Gerard Reuther; Gerard Galliano

Click on the Link for the Pictures of these two days of Competition in Sunny Florida.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Juankydotcom/SETriples#