Fourteen-year-old Madison Richter is getting used to going out of town and coming home as a national champion.
She won her second title recently in Regina, Sask. Richter took the title in the Junior Girls Singles division of the Youth Bowl Canada National Championship in five pin bowling.
She has been playing the sport for only five years. Her coach and father has been involved since she started.
“Madison has dedication and hard work. She practises a lot and has confidence in herself,” said Greg.
While some may feel that bowling is not a “real” sport, Richter challenges them.
“Bowling is a real sport. I say try it. Come out and play 10 or 20 games in a weekend and see how sore you are afterwards. You use parts and muscles you don’t usually use,” he said.
In her first three games, Madison put up scores of 329, 310 and 339. Over the 11 games of the singles competition, she averaged 246.
Madison feels that consistency is the biggest challenge she has in the sport. To that end she plays three days a week. Her first trip to the nationals was four years ago in Winnipeg and now she looks forward to next year when she will be meeting some more challenging competition.
“There’s a girl from Nanaimo who will be my main competition next year. I think the bigger challenge brings out the best in me,” she said.
Bowling generally runs from September to April. In the summer, Richter plays softball as a pitcher and at first base.
In the future she would like to go into nursing. To that end, there are scholarship funds available for posting the highest average at the national championships.
With another five years of eligibility, she should be able to get a good start on those funds.