Table of Contents Page USA Looking For a Clean Sweep 1 Front Runners 2 Of Scrum-halves and Computer Kings 3 Hand Stories 4 Mixed Qualifying Session Three 5

With eight pairs in the top ten, the USA is dominating the final of the World Mixed Pairs Championship. Perhaps that is not so surprising given that America has supplied almost half the 182 pairs who are contesting the final. After the first session Becky Rogers and Jeff Meckstroth hold a narrow lead over Judi Radin and Zia. France's Elizabeth Hugon and Jean Jacques Palau are a close third and those three pairs have a little daylight between themselves and the next three pairs, Beth Palmer and Steve Robinson, Sally & Kit Woolsey, both of USA and China's Yu Zhang and Shaolin Sun.

With so many great players in the field and two sessions to play today, no one is counting their chickens, but it will be no surprise if the winners prove to be one of these six pairs.

In percentage terms the Netherlands deserve a mention, as all their five pairs (plus two transnational combinations) made it to the final.