WELCOME

On behalf of the Australian Bridge Federation and the Queensland Bridge Association, I am pleased to inform you of the 1st Asian Cup to be held in conjunction with the 2008 PABF Championship.

The Australian Bridge Association would cordially like to invite your country's Bridge Association to send teams to the event. The event will run from 29th August to 7th September 2008.

The Congress and Asian Cup will be the first Bridge event to be open to all the countries of Zones 4, Zone 6 & Zone 7. This is 28 countries and 110,000 bridge players. All National Bridge Associations are encouraged to enter a Team for the event in at least one of the sections. Teams and Pairs can also be entered as Transnationals.

The format of the event will be a Qualifying Teams competition with an Open, Women's Senior and Youth section. It is envisaged to run 18 board qualifying matches as a round robin event with a 64 board Semi Final and Final. The precise schedule will however be determined subject to the final number of entants in each section.

There will also be a Stratified Pairs event at the beginning of the Congress as a precursor to the Teams event. This will be open to all delegate players as well as local Australian players not otherwise playing as delegates. A Swiss Pairs event will be held at the end of the Congress again open to to all delegate players and local Australian players. The Swiss Pairs will be run in conjunction with the Team finals.

The venue will be the Gold Coast International Hotel in Surfers Paradise. This is a 5-star, International Hotel easily accessed from Brisbane International Airport. There is plenty of accommodation at the Venue or in close proximity to the Hotel. The Gold Coast International Bridge Congress has been held at the Hotel for a number of years and the Hotel is familiar with the requirements of bridge players. All delegates are encouraged to make their accommodation arrangements with the Hotel.

Entry Fees for the event are:

Teams	US$1000	(Open / Women / Senior) *Youth
Stratified Pairs	US$160	All Pairs
Swiss Pairs	US$120	All Pairs

^*Discounted entry fees will be offered to Youth Players - Please contact the convenor direct.

Australia has Visa requirements for visitors travelling to Australia and Delegates and Officials are reminded to allow sufficient time to apply for any necessary visa. We would be grateful if you could advise the convenor at the earliest opportunity who will be requiring visas so we are in a position to help with any enquiries from the Immigration Department.

The event is a wonderful opportunity for players and countries to play International Championship Bridge against all the other countries of Asia in a friendly and relaxed environment.

Entry Forms will be available on the website www.qldbridge.com. Please forward your Notice of Intention by Friday May 30, 2008, with final confirmation by Friday July 25, 2008.

Should you have any questions do not hesitate to contact the convenor Mr Charles Page

I look forward to seeing you at the 2008 PABF Championship.

My best wishes
Keith McDonald
President
Australian Bridge Federation