Chris Clarke (croquet Player)
Chris Clarke (born 1971 in Lancashire) is an English croquet player who has been ranked among the world's top players since the late 1980s. Chris has won two World Championships in Association Croquet, in 1995 and again in 2008. 2008 was perhaps Chris's finest year, overtaking previous world champions Robert Fulford and Reg Bamford to regain the position of world number one player, which he held for in excess of 16 months. He also reached the semi-finals of the WCF Golf Croquet World Championships in March 2008 in Cape Town, South Africa and led the English team to the finals of the 2009 European team championships.
Clarke now lives in Christchurch, New Zealand. On 30 January 2008 he was married to Jenny Clarke (née Williams), who is currently (2012) the highest-ranked female player in the world, and plays for New Zealand. The pair were therefore due to be on opposing sides when Great Britain played New Zealand in the 2010 MacRobertson Shield, before Clarke withdrew with a back injury.
In October 2012, Clarke returned to competitive association croquet, his back injury having prevented play for two years. In November 2012, he completed the requisite ten matches needed to return to the world rankings, which he did in first place.
Clarke was chairman of the organizing committee for the 2008 WCF World Association Croquet Championships and won the event 10 days later. Chris is also current President of Canterbury Croquet Association and coach of the New Zealand youth squad.
Read more about Chris Clarke (croquet Player): Start of Career, Achievements
Famous quotes containing the words chris and/or clarke:
“When I get all these accolades for being true to myself, I say, “Who else can I be? I can’t be Chris Evert.””
—Martina Navratilova (b. 1956)
“He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,”
—Clement Clarke Moore (1779–1863)