World Crokinole Championship celebrates 25 years in Tavistock

Kathy Irwin Event Volunteer from London, Mark Weiler from Kitchener, Lynne Whale, Linda McCaffery, Janice McNorgen, Bill Coles, all from St. Thomas and Mark McInnis from Kitchener pose for a photo in front of the World’s Largest Crokinole Board at the 25th World Crokinole Championship in Tavistock. Diane Danen photo

By Diane Danen

The 25th World Crokinole Championship drew players from around the world to the Tavistock and District Recreation Centre this past weekend, celebrating a quarter-century of competition, friendship and community.

What began in 1999 as a small gathering of crokinole enthusiasts has grown into an international championship attracting players from Canada, the United States, Japan, Germany, Hungary, Australia and First Nations communities.

In its early years, organizers had to create their own rules and borrow crokinole boards of various shapes and sizes to make the tournament possible.

Over the past 25 years, the championship has continued to grow while remaining open to players of all ages and skill levels. Last year, the tournament featured its youngest and oldest competitors ever, a five-year-old and a 92-year-old.

While players compete for world titles, many participants say the tournament is about much more than winning. The annual event has become a gathering place where friendships are renewed and new connections are formed.

For David Younker of Kingston, P.E.I, the people are what keep him returning year after year. Younker has attended the championship since 2002.

Younker grew up playing crokinole with family members and his next-door neighbour and close friend, Darryl MacDonald. Though MacDonald now lives in Burlington, the pair have maintained their friendship and a tradition that spans more than two decades. Each year, Younker makes the 1,800-kilometre, 17-hour drive to Ontario to visit MacDonald, and together they compete in the championship doubles event.

For Younker, it’s about more than the competition.

“I really enjoy seeing old friends and meeting new people each year,” he said. “I’ve made a lot of friends from all over the world.”

Some of those friendships have extended beyond the tournament, with fellow players travelling to Prince Edward Island. In 2012, Nathan Walsh of Kitchener and Clare Kuepfer of Dobbinton made the trip to Prince Edward Island and went on to win the Island Crokinole Championship.

Younker belongs to the Hunter River Crokinole Club, which operates through the Lions Club. During the winter months, he plays up to five times a week.

Members of the Railway City Crokinuts from St. Thomas are a good example of the friendships and community that can develop through crokinole. Founded by Pat Weiler and Janice McNorgan, the club's name reflects the fun-loving spirit of its members.

The Railway City Crokinuts meet monthly at the St. Thomas Seniors’ Centre. Several members also live in the same apartment building and gather weekly in their social room, strengthening the friendships they have built through their shared love of the game.

As the World Crokinole Championship celebrates its 25th year, the tournament continues to showcase not only the skill of its competitors but also the friendships and community spirit that have helped make the event a lasting success.