Wood honoured to be Bowls Ambassador

The honorary role, the first of its kind, was bestowed on the 73-year-old whose career has spanned 45 years in lawn bowls which included eight Commonwealth Games appearances.

Wood was presented with a framed international shirt from his last outdoor international competitive outing at Sighthill in Edinburgh this summer, when he helped his fellow Scots retain the Home Internationals title. Scotland’s most decorated bowler announced his retirement at that event and was given a guard of honour on the greens by the players from the participating teams, all of whom signed the shirt presented yesterday.

Wood, who bowed out of the game as world champion, received a standing ovation from more than 300 people attending the AGM at the Albert Halls.

The West Barns member said after the presentation: “It is a great honour to receive this kind of recognition and I am delighted to be given this role as Bowls Scotland Ambassador. I have had a great career playing for Scotland. I had a few lows during that time but far outweighed by the tremendous highs and I have many, many good memories – mainly of when I was winning.

“My son and I have worked out that, during my 45-year career, I have travelled around the world 36 times and clocked up about 900,000 miles as well as around 120 days on an aeroplane. I am very grateful to the Scottish Bowling Association and now Bowls Scotland, who have supported me over the years and enabled me to play all over the world. It is a great honour to be given this role and opportunity to put something back into the game.”

John Anderson, Bowls Scotland chairman, said: “It is fitting that Willie as the most capped Scottish Commonwealth Games athlete with a record number of world championship medals was given this honorary role as a mark of our appreciation, and in recognition of his tremendous achievements and distinguished career.

“The presentation of the shirt was a small token from Bowls Scotland, and the signatures from all of the competitors from the home nations are a demonstration of his huge popularity at home and overseas. In his new role Willie will continue to be a great asset to our bowling community in Scotland. “