JULIAN PACE BONELLO is one of the successful sports personalities who keeps a low profile. But one cannot ignore his contribution to local sport, especially bowling, which has been his favorite sport since 1970. Since founding the association in 1975, he never looked back, putting it on a firm footing and later occupying top posts abroad, among them the presidency of the Commonwealth Tenpin Bowling Association. He is also the deputy president of the Malta Olympic Committee. Here he tells his story to Henry Brincat

Julian Pace Bonello – a profile

Date of birth: 1 May, 1952

Education: Primary School in York, England (St Gregory) between 1962 and 1964. Secondary School at St Aloysius College between 1964 and 1968.

Work career: His first job was at Barclays Bank in 1969 where he continued working even when its name was changed to Mid-Med Bank, till 1985. During part of that term he was seconded to the Government Computer Centre where between January 1984 and April 1985, he was an assistant manager. Then he joined ICL which, later, also had its name changed to Fujitsu. It is now known as S&T. He has been managing director of the company since August 1998.

Sporting career: In his schooldays, while still in England, he used to play football and cricket. Back in Malta, at St Aloysius, he again played football. But then he also had a short spell playing waterpolo for Neptunes, with whom he won an Under 16 title, way back in 1968. He also played some volleyball, before the started playing bowling.

Administrative career: He has been president of the Malta Tenpin Bowling Association since its inauguration in 1975. In fact he is the founder of the association. Between 1994 and 1998, he became the chairman of the World Tenpin Bowling Association’s Commercial Affairs Committee before being appointed director of the same committee from 1998 to 2002. It was then that he was elected as president of the Commonwealth Tenpin Bowling Federation, of which he is a co-founder. He is also a co-founder of the Mediterranean Challenge Cup which came to life in 1998. Malta has already hosted the event twice, in 1999 and this year (a few days ago). He was also responsible for the staging of the Gold Cup event, both in 1983 and 1990. He is also deputy president of the Malta Olympic Committee since 2001. He was its Director of Strategy for the 2003 Games for European Small Nations in Malta, thus forming part of the Organising Committee, Chef de Mission for the Youth Games in June 2004 and assistant Chef de Mission at last year’s Athens Olympic Games.

Julian is married to Marguerite. His father is the well-known Antoine, another sporting personality who, in his days, was involved in athletics, rowing and tennis, besides serving for several years, as the secretary of the Malta Racing Club. He also formed part of the Marsa Sports Club management team, when it was run by the British Services.

One of the most affable persons I have met in local sport is, without doubt, Julian Pace Bonello, the only president the Malta Tenpin Bowling Association has had since its inception in 1975.

He is one of those persons who are always available to give valuable advice and lend a helping hand. No wonder he has advanced rapidly to occupy important positions both at home and abroad, apart from that of president of the local association.

Julian started his association with the sport of bowling around 1970. “At that time we had the Msida Centre which was opened in 1966. I was lured to go there by some friends and I enjoyed it, though we could not take part in the leagues, most of which were organised by the British Services and oil companies.

“It was in 1975 that I managed to convince others to help me launch the Malta Bowling Association and I was named as the first president,” he said.

In his earlier days, he used to play football at school in York, where he resided till he was seven years old.

“I never was a top player. I only played for my class teams, but I used to be good at right back. Football was the first sport I practiced and I was always encouraged to practise sport by my father. Even at school in England, the idea was to occupy ourselves with our studies for half a day while the other half was dedicated to sport. In fact, I also used to play cricket as a batsman,” he said.

On his return to Malta, he again played for the class team at St Aloysius College, but also played for a team in the GIDA Association league. “For one and a half years, I also played waterpolo for Neptunes and in 1968, we won the Under 16 title. Among the well known players in our squad then were Andre Cauchi, Jean Curmi, Mark Vella and Ivan Micallef. I stopped playing that game, because it was too rough, and therefore not my type,” he added.

Instead, he was attracted to bowling after some friends, especially Hugh Attard Montalto, lured him to try it at the Msida Centre (before a big fire destroyed the premises). “We could not take part in the leagues of the RAF and the oil companies, but in 1975, we finally set up our own association and from the year after, in 1976, we started organising our own leagues on Wednesdays and Thursdays. In 1977, we became members of the world and European bowling federations as well as the Malta Olympic Committee. In 1988, the Super Bowl opened in St Julian’s and it obviously was a big injection to the sport and the game’s popularity increased considerably.

“In my days, when I was a player, I won the title two or three times with Vanguards. I was also among the top 10 bowlers in Malta occasionally. In 1979, I was selected to take part in the world championships in The Philippines for the first – and last – time. During my stay there, I got too excited and I did not sleep. I decided to quit playing and concentrate on the administrative side of the game.

“To serve the association in the best possible way, I have to dedicate a lot of time and here, I have to thank my wife Marguerite wholeheartedly. Without her support and that of my parents, I would not have been able to dedicate so much time to sport,” he said.

Asked to mention some bowlers who have hovered around the top locally during his 30-year tenure as president, he mentioned Sue Abela as the top woman. “She is definitely the best I have encountered. But her sister Melissa could be as good as her if she had more time for training. There were also Doris Camilleri and Liz Grech who used to grace the top in the past. Among the men, we have had top bowlers in the form of Frank Montebello, David Montebello, Ronnie Vella, Charles Attard, Silvio Anastasi, Victor Callus, Ray Falzon, Kenneth Arpa, Mark Spiteri, Leli Baldacchino and Dennis Mercieca among others.

“We have always had good levels so much so that we have managed to win the MediCup, which is of a very high standard, on three occasions and finished second on another three occasions.”

Julian was honored to have been elected president of the Commonwealth Federation. “It is an autonomous body from the world federation now, but we respect their rules and we keep them informed of what we do. We have managed to organise our own championships with the support of the Commonwealth Games Federation. We have 24 member countries, simply because bowling is not practiced in all Commonwealth countries,” he added.

Asked to mention some memorable moments, he quickly mentioned Sue Abela’s winning of the European Championship in Israel in 1999. “On that occasion, she was also presented with the Gieh ir-Repubblika. In 1997, she also won bronze in the world championship in Nottingham. There was also the MediCup win in Malta in 1999,” he added.

Asked what he thought the sport needed to give it another push forward, he said it was important for the association to have its own premises. “With just one centre, it is not enough. We need to be given a site by the government which we are prepared to develop. We have also met some private entrepreneurs, but the association is not in a position to afford buying any kind of land. We hope that talks with the Maltese Council of Sport will be fruitful,” he said.

Julian is not just a man for bowling. Since 2001, he has occupied the post of deputy president of the Malta Olympic Committee. “After Bertie Muscat resigned, I won the election for that post which was also contested by Louis Borg, Envic Galea and Clarence Busuttil. In all probability, I am the first vice-president from a non-Olympic sport body. It was and still is a big honour for me to be there. I have no pretensions. I know I have to work hard, but even though I have had to deviate a little more away from bowling, however, the experience at the MOC is something I will cherish forever. Having been at the Athens games as assistant Chef de Mission of the Maltese contingent was something unforgettable. Although you see little of what is happening, especially at the opening ceremony, walking behind the flag in front of such an enthusiastic crowd is quite emotional. It was fantastic. In future, I also hope that bowling will be included as an Olympic sport,” he said.