By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, June 14: Lavinia Kho Jia Jie added another major international title to her growing resume after capturing the Women’s Open crown at the 56th Singapore International Open Bowling Championship 2026, earning SGD10,000 in prize money following a composed run through the stepladder finals.
According to a report by the Sarawak Public Communications Unit (Ukas), the victory marks one of the biggest achievements of Lavinia’s career to date, with the Singapore International Open widely regarded as one of Asia’s most competitive and prestigious tenpin bowling tournaments, attracting elite bowlers from across the region and beyond.
Competing at SingaporeBowling @ Rifle Range, Lavinia entered the stepladder finals as the second seed following Round 2 of the Open Masters and successfully converted her strong qualifying performance into a championship-winning campaign.
For Lavinia, the Singapore triumph represents another significant milestone in a career that continues to gather momentum, while adding one of Asia’s most coveted bowling titles to her list of accomplishments.
She opened the finals with a dominant 258–166 victory over fellow Malaysian Anis Hannani Romzi to secure a place in the title match.
Awaiting her was reigning Thailand Open champion Nora Lyana Nastasia, setting up a showdown between two of the region’s leading women’s bowlers.
Lavinia edged Nora 192–184 in the first championship match to force a deciding game under the tournament’s stepladder format.
With the title on the line, the Sarawakian held her nerve to prevail 201–188 and secure the Women’s Open trophy.
The result further strengthens Lavinia’s standing on the international circuit and adds to a string of notable performances by the Sarawak bowler in recent years.
The championship also highlighted the strength of Sarawak’s bowling programme, with several State athletes advancing to the final stages of the tournament.
In the Men’s Open Division, Tsen Fan Yew, representing the Malaysian national team, and Muhd Isyraq Iqbal Ramadhan both progressed to the finals against a field featuring some of the region’s top bowlers.
Sarawak also had a strong presence in the Women’s Open category, where Gillian Lim and Nur Hazirah Ramli, competing under the Malaysian national team banner, alongside Adriana Ramiza Ramulo and Nur Fathi Fatihah, qualified for the final rounds.
Their performances ensured Sarawak was well represented across the tournament’s premier divisions, underlining the State’s continued contribution to Malaysian bowling at the regional level. — DayakDaily
