| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British (English) |
| Born | (1947-01-14)14 January 1947 (age 79) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Lawn bowls |
| Club | Wigton BC (outdoors) Cumbria BC (indoors) |
Medal record | |
John Nicholson Bell (born 14 January 1947) is a former English lawn and indoor bowler, commentator and World Bowls President.[1][2][3]
Bell won his first gold medal as part of the England team that won the team event (Leonard Cup) at the1980 World Outdoor Bowls Championship inMelbourne.[4] Four years later he won another gold at the1984 World Outdoor Bowls Championships.[5] Following a team gold and doublebronze in the triples and fours at the1988 Auckland Bell won a fourth gold medal in the fours withAndy Thomson,Brett Morley andDavid Cutler at the1996 World Outdoor Bowls Championship.[6]
Bell representedEngland at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in thefours at the1994 Commonwealth Games[7] and the fours at the1998 Commonwealth Games inKuala Lumpur.[8]
Bell made his first appearance in the National Championships at Mortlake in 1966 when he was just 18. He wonNational Championship titles in the singles in 1983,[9] thetriples in 1976[10] and pairs[11] and triples in 1991.[12] He also won the singles at theBritish Isles Bowls Championships in 1984.[13][14] In 2016, he won thesenior pairs title.
He bowled for the Wigton Club (outdoors) and the Cumbria Club in Carlisle (indoors).[15] In the mid-1980s he joined the BBC bowls commentary team.[4]
Bell was the Head of Tourism for Carlisle City Council.[3] He was appointed as the President of World Bowls on 6 December 2012, a position he held until 2021.[2][3][16]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
