Irish road bowling
Dutch competitor Silke Tulk bowling in Northern Ireland | |
| Characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Equipment | cannonball of c.18 centimetres (7 in) circumference and 28 ounces (794 g) weight |
| Venue | a road |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Ireland |
| Olympic | no |
| World Championships | yes |
| Paralympic | no |
Road bowling (Irish: Ból an bhóthair; also called [long] bullets) is an Irish sport in which competitors attempt to take the fewest throws to propel a metal ball along a predetermined course of country roads. The sport originated in Ireland and is mainly played in counties Armagh and Cork. Road bowling in Ireland is governed by the voluntary Irish Road Bowling Association (Irish: Ból Chumann na hÉireann).
A similar sport, Klootschieten, is played in eastern parts of the Netherlands and in northern Germany (however, the variations differ).