Pétanque in Iran

Pétanque in Iran is organized under the Boules & Petanque Association of I.R. Iran (BPAI) (انجمن پتانک و بولز جمهوری اسلامی ایران), founded in 2009 and, per its own FIPJP nation record, a full member of the Fédération Internationale de Pétanque et Jeu Provençal (FIPJP) since the same year. In under two decades the federation has built a national championship circuit that rotates across Iranian provinces, opened dedicated petanque and bowls centers in several cities, and produced a president who now holds senior leadership roles in Asian boules sport governance.

History

The BPAI was founded in 2009 by Dr. Jasem Manouchehri, who has served as its president ever since. Manouchehri, an academic in sport management at the Central Tehran Branch of Islamic Azad University, built the federation from a standing start to full FIPJP membership and, according to his own published biography, became "the youngest manager in Iranian sport history" to sit on the executive board of an IOC-recognized international federation, a position he has held since 2018. Over roughly 15 years the association describes itself as the sole national governing body recognized by both the world and Asian boules confederations for petanque and bowls disciplines in Iran.

The federation's earliest documented national event predates its 2020s expansion: the 3rd National Workers' Petanque Champion of Champions Tournament, held 25-27 September 2018 (3-5 Mehr 1397) in Hamedan, brought together eleven provincial teams (Hamedan, Tehran, Alborz, Qom, Kerman, Zanjan, Khuzestan, Ilam, North Khorasan, Gilan, and Isfahan) and, per the federation's own report, staged shooting competitions for the first time in the history of petanque and bowls sport in Iran alongside the usual triples events. Khuzestan topped the overall medal table, ahead of host province Hamedan and Tehran in third; Hamedan's women's team and Khuzestan's men's team won their respective triples titles.

The federation's competitive calendar shows steady, multi-city growth through the 2020s. In February 2021, with pandemic restrictions still in force, the BPAI adapted its 10th national championship into a scaled-down "Tournament of 8 Bests" - an invitation-only mixed doubles event held 4-5 February 2021 with just eight teams, rather than the federation's usual open national field. By February 2023, the 13th National Triples and Shooting Championships for men and women were staged 14-18 February 2023 at a newly opened BPAI center on Farah Abad Beach in Sari City, Mazandaran Province, on Iran's Caspian coast. A year later, the 15th National Petanque and Bowls Championships (20-25 February 2024) moved to the Shahid Ghorbani International Sport Complex in Ahwaz, Khouzestan Province, in the country's south - run across nine competitive categories over six days and, per the federation's own description, the largest petanque and bowls event held in that region to date, coinciding with the opening of a new dedicated Petanque and Bowls Center at the venue. Most recently, the 16th Iranian All Petanque and Bowls Championships - used to select the men's, women's, and junior national teams - were held in Tehran 13-17 January 2025, alongside the BPAI's 17th General Assembly.

Federation

BPAI president Dr. Jasem Manouchehri also serves as Secretary General of the Asia Oceania Bowls Confederation (AOBC) and as an Executive Committee member of the Asian Boules Sport Confederation (ABSC), giving Iranian petanque a direct voice in regional governance beyond its own borders. The federation operates through a board of directors and a set of standing committees covering technical affairs, competitions, coaching, refereeing, education and research, cultural development, talent identification, and communications, with provincial branches organizing local competition and development - provinces with documented BPAI committee activity include Semnan, Khuzestan, Yazd, Mazandaran, and Tehran. The BPAI has stated its priority is establishing itself as, in its own words, "the only official authoritative reference body" for petanque and bowls sports nationwide, and it operates under the umbrella of Iran's national sports federations organization per Ministry of Sports directive.

Federation Contact

The BPAI's registered headquarters is at the O-Sport Complex, 7th Golestan, Alvand Town, in Hamedan, Iran. The federation can be reached by mobile, WhatsApp, or Telegram at +98 912 662 8481, or by email at manouchehri.sport@gmail.com, manouchehri.jasem@gmail.com, or iran@fipjp.com. Its website is boules.ir, with additional activity on Instagram at @Boules.Iran and @Petanque.Iran.

Major Tournaments

• National Workers' Petanque Champion of Champions Tournament: BPAI's earliest documented national event; the 3rd edition (25-27 September 2018) in Hamedan drew eleven provincial teams and introduced shooting as a competitive category for the first time in Iranian petanque history, alongside the usual triples events.
• Iranian National (All Petanque and Bowls) Championships: BPAI's flagship annual event, used to crown national titles and select the men's, women's, and junior national teams; the 16th edition ran 13-17 January 2025 in Tehran alongside the federation's General Assembly.
• National Triples and Shooting Championships: A dedicated men's and women's triples/precision-shooting event; the 13th edition (14-18 February 2023) inaugurated a new BPAI center on Farah Abad Beach in Sari, Mazandaran Province.
• National Petanque and Bowls Championships (South of Iran): A regional showcase event; the 15th edition (20-25 February 2024) was held across nine categories at the Shahid Ghorbani International Sport Complex in Ahwaz, Khouzestan Province, and doubled as the opening of a new regional Petanque and Bowls Center.
• Tournament of 8 Bests: A pandemic-era, invitation-only mixed doubles format the BPAI used to keep its 10th national championship running in a reduced, COVID-safe field of eight teams, 4-5 February 2021.

Provinces & Development

BPAI competitions and center openings documented since 2021 span Mazandaran (Sari, Caspian coast), Khuzestan (Ahwaz, in the south), and Tehran, with additional provincial committee activity reported in Semnan and Yazd - evidence of a federation actively rotating its championship calendar around the country rather than concentrating solely in the capital, alongside a program of opening new dedicated petanque and bowls venues at each host city.

Clubs & Where to Play

BPAI does not publish a comprehensive national directory of individual petanque clubs online. Instead, play is organized through the federation's provincial petanque and boules committees, which run local leagues and feed players into the national championship circuit. Beyond the Mazandaran, Khuzestan, Semnan, Tehran, and Yazd committees already noted above, BPAI's own site also lists active provincial committees in Bushehr (on the Persian Gulf coast) and Isfahan (in central Iran), broadening the federation's documented footprint to seven provinces. Anyone looking to play should contact the relevant provincial committee, or reach BPAI's Hamedan headquarters directly (see Federation Contact above), for the nearest active court or training group.