Dumfries pensioner aiming for Commonwealth Games bowling gold medal

Dumfries pensioner Rosemary Lenton is going for a Commonwealth Games gold medal tomorrow.

She and bowling partner Pauline Wilson have reached the final of the Para Women’s Pairs B6-B8.

They take on Australia’s Cheryl Lindfield and Serena Bonnell at 3pm in Birmingham.

Rosemary, who turns 73 this month, is now guaranteed a silver medal in her Commonwealth Games debut for Scotland.

The Scots have bounced back from opening day defeats on Friday when they lost 16-15 to Australia and 23-11 to South Africa.

But on Saturday morning they enjoyed victory over New Zealand 15-12 to book a place in the semi-final despite losing to England in their afternoon match.

Pauline and Rosemary, who is among the oldest bowlers to take part in the Games, gained revenge yesterday when they beat England 16-10 to clinch their place in the final.

They have previously beaten the Australian pairing during a warm up event for Birmingham.

And Friday’s match was a very close affair with the game tied going into the last two ends.

After her Scotland call up, Rosemary told the Standard: “It is a great accolade to have in sport and I cannot put into words how much I am grateful for this opportunity.”

Her route to the Games began almost two decades ago when an injury that left her in a wheelchair opened her eyes to a variety of sports that helped her to stay active. In 2005 she began curling and also joined the Crichton Royal Bowling Club.

Over the years she has represented Scotland at three World Bowls Championships, winning silver in the mixed pairs in New Zealand in 2015, and nine World Championships for wheelchair curling.