Deafness helps him to be champ

Indoor bowling singles champion of the Deaf Welfare Centre, Stewart Smith, has rounded off a successful season by winning the Auckland indoor centre’s champion-of-champion singles.

Apart from his two singles titles, Smith skipped the winning rink in the fours and partnered Colin Campbell to win the welfare centre’s open pairs tournament and take second place in the Manukau association’s pairs championship.

Smith was a member of the Manukau association’s team which recently won the Sinclair Cup inter-association contest, going through the series unbeaten.

He was also a member of the rink skipped by Colin Campbell which won the Remuera R.S.A. open tournament last month. This was the third occasion that he had been in the winning team in this event.

Smith, who is the secretary of the Deaf Welfare Centre, thinks that his deafness is an asset as he cannot hear noises that often distract other competitors.