Today, the 9-ball competition was launched at the Dynamic Billard European Pool Championships 2018 in NH Conference Centre Koningshof, Veldhoven, The Netherlands. Several interesting results could be witnessed.
One outstanding match was definitely the encounter between Fedor Gorst (RUS) and Andreas Madsen (DEN). Both players have earned their merits in the junior’s divisions in the previous years. Madsen is 21-years-old, Gorst is 18 years of age these days. The match started out quite promising for Gorst. He had the first break shot and pocketed two balls, having a perfect position for the 2-ball. He played a good safety shot and forced Madsen to commit a foul. Then he ran the balls but missed an easy 6-ball, leaving it all for Madsen. What an unnecessary miss that was! Madsen ran out and took the next three consecutive racks as well, advancing to a 4:0 lead over Gorst. Finally in rack #5, Gorst was able to open his account in the match, getting to 1:4. But Madsen struck back and won another two racks, leading 6:1 now after 7 racks. Having executed the break shot in rack #8, Madsen could play the 2-ball but not pocket it. He played a good safety shot. Gorst was able to play a correct shot and come up with a resafe position. Madsen hit the 2-ball but left a shot for Gorst. The Russian came tot he table and won his second rack, turning the scoreboard to 2:6. The match continued with Gorst committing unbelievably easy mistakes while Madsen was rock solid and focussed on the table. He continued shooting pretty self-confident and consequently won the match with 9:2. Andreas Madsen will advance into the round of the last 64 players single elimination while Gorst awaits the winner of the match Erol Kayas (TUR) v Michel Bartol (CRO) for his chance to be drawn into the single elimination stage as well.
Other remarkable results from today include „The Siberian Express“ Ruslan Chinakhov (RUS) wiping the floor with Miha Zajc (SLO) 9:1. Ralf Souquet (GER) even whitewashed his opponent in the first round, handing Iker-Andoni Echeverria (ESP) a 9:0. Ivar Saris (NED) sent Joshua Filler (GER) to the loser’s side with 9:5 in their opening match. Kasper Kristoffersen (DEN) came up with a bit of a surprise, winning 9:6 over Spain’s #1 David Alcaide. Kim Laaksonen (FIN) won a heartbreaker with 9:8 over favoured Konstantin Stepanov (RUS). Laaksonen’s teammate Jani Siekkinen (FIN) took down newly crowned 8-ball Champion Bahram Lotfy (DEN) with 9:6.
In the girls’ division, two medallists from this week met in the first round of their 9-ball quest for glory. 8-ball Champion Darya Siranchuk (UKR) took it up against 10-ball runner-up Daria Cheprasova (BLR). The match was determined by many mistakes. Especially Cheprasova came up with a lot of positioning errors which Siranchuk was able to capitalise from. In the end, Siranchuk was a deserved 6:3 winner over Cheprasova.
In the women’s division, Line Kjoersvik (NOR) was drawn against Tamara Peeters-Rademakers (NED). The winner of that match would go up against defending Champion Kelly Fisher (GBR). The match was quite even for the first 9 racks. Kjoersvik was up 5:4 with her own break shot coming up. She had a ball down and a tough shot on the 2-ball which she missed. Peeters had the chance to level the match at 5:5. But she missed an extremely easy 2-ball to the corner pocket and gave second live to Kjoersvik in that rack. Both athletes had several more attempts at the table but Peeters always missed one shot too many. Kjoersvik took the rack and went on the hill with 6:4. To make matters worse, Peeters scratched when breaking the balls in rack #11. Kjoersvik got to the table with ball in hand and that sealed the deal for the Norwegian. She finished all balls on the table and won the match with 7:4. Kjoersvik will be up against defending Champion Kelly Fisher (GBR) in the next round.
The seniors’s, ladies’ and U17 division had their first round matches played with no big upsets. In the Under 19 division however, Tin Petljak (CRO) surprisingly managed to defeat Christian Froehlich (GER) by a hair’s breadth with 8:7 in the first round. Another top gun who was put in the loser’s round was Wiktor Zielinski (POL). The stellar talent from Poland had to accept a 7:8 defeat against Ilia Nekleenov (RUS). The only wheelchair match played so far today was Daniel Savic (AUT) winning with 7:4 over Gintas Jonauskas (LTU).
The Dynamic Billard European Pool Championships 2018 will commence tomorrow morning at 10:00 CET with the first matches from the 9-ball individuals competition. The team’s finals are scheduled for 17:00 CET.
The Jubilee Championships are played on 60 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Radoslaw Babica from Poland ousted "The Tornado" Tony Drago (MLT) from the Dynamic Billard Treviso Open Euro-Tour event with a narrow 9:8 victory.
One great and thrilling match happened today in the loser’s qualification round when Radoslaw Babica (POL) faced Tony Drago (MLT). The match went along very leveled and after 10 racks, the scoreboard displayed a tie at 5:5. Then, Babica went on the hill first and got an 8:6 advantage over Drago. But the "Tornado" struck back, winning two straight racks in order to make the match 8:8. Then, Drago was at the table with all balls in the open for him. However, he missed an easy 5-ball and allowed Babica back into the table. The Polish could not run-out but he turned the final rack into a safety exchange. Drago tried a risky bank shot when he had the option of either playing a safety or going for a bank. He missed it and allowed Babica to run the rack and win the match with 9:8.
Another interesting match was the clash between Michal Turkowski (POL) and Marcus Chamat (SWE). After five racks, Turkowski was leading 4:1 over Chamat. But the Swede did not even think about giving up. He fought back and got into the match, turning the scoreboard to 8:7 after 15 racks. Then Turkowski played up to his best and made the match another hill-hill thriller. In the final and decisive 17th rack, a safety battle occurred. Both players tried not to leave a shot for the opponent. Then Chamat left a shot for Turkowski which the Polish had to jump. He flunked the ball in over three rails but it could not be considered to be a lucky shot since he hooked himself again on the next ball. While he attempted to hit that object ball, Turkowski committed a foul shot and gave ball in hand to Chamat who capitalized from it and ran the rack to win the match by a hair’s breadth with 9:8. In the next round, the loser’s qualification round, Chamat fell to Ivica Putnik (CRO) with 5:9.
The results of the last 32 players single elimination are as follows:
That provides us with the following line-up for the round of the last 16 players:
Niels Feijen v Oliver Ortmann
Francisco Diaz-Pizarro v John Tanttu
Alexander Kazakis v Radoslaw Babica
Tomasz Kaplan v Albin Ouschan
Nick van den Berg v Ivica Putnik
Mats Schjetne v Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz
Can Salim-Giasar v Ralf Souquet
Denis Grabe v Mark Gray
Action continues tomorrow morning at 10:00 local time with matches of the round of the last 16 players. At 09:00, the women’s tournament will start with matches of the first round.
The tournament is played on 16 tables of which 12 are in a livestream. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be purchased at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website eurotouronline.com , or contact our press office.
Fedor Gorst, 15-year-old player from Moscow, Russia, just came up with a magnificent comeback against Nick Van Den Berg (NED), winning the match with 9:8.
In the beginning everything looked like business as usual. Nick van den Berg, multiple European Champion and winner of 3 Euro-Tour stops, Mosconi Cup team player, was definitely favored over young talent Fedor Gorst. He took a quick 8:3 lead and went on the hill without any hiccups. It looked like the match would be over after a short time with an expected victor. But after rack eleven, the tide has turned in the match. Van den Berg’s break did not come anymore and Gorst hung in there, not accepting the threat of losing. To the contrary, it looked like Gorst grew stronger and stronger with every chance he could get. The match was really very entertaining to watch and after 16 racks played, the scoreboard suddenly displayed a tie at 8:8. The match had turned into a one-rack-decider. What a drama! In rack 17, van den Berg was definitely the better player. He played a good safety shot and left nothing for Gorst who could only hit the colored ball but left a shot for van den Berg. The Dutch however ran out of position for the 6-ball and had to play another safety shot which he did with all of his experience. The cue ball was hiding behind the 9-ball and the 6-ball was some 30 centimeters away, completely blocked. But Gorst went for it and flukes it in over two rails first, sinking the 6-ball in the side pocket. He then ran the remaining balls on the table to win the match with 9:8 and send Nick van den Berg to the loser’s side.
Other interesting results from today include Kasper Kristoffersen (DEN) winning 9:8 over Jim Chawki (SWE) in a match that was characterized by many errors from both players. IN an all-Polish clash, young Wiktor Zielinski defeated grandmaster Mateusz Sniegocki with 9:8. Alexander Kazakis (GRE) showed no mercy with Juan Carlos Exposito (ESP), creaming him with 9:1. Imran Majid (GBR) took down Francisco Sanchez Ruiz (ESP) with 9:7. After a long time of absence, Artem Koshovyi (UKR) is entering the European pool stage again. Today, his victim was Ralph Eckert (GER) with 9:4. „The Tornado“ Tony Drago (MLT) was already trailing 2:5 to Nikos Ekonomopoulos (GRE) when he seemed to shift into overdrive and started playing unbelievably strong. He allowed one more rack for Ekonomopoulos to take, winning the match with 9:6.
Joshua Filler (GER) turned 18 years old today and made himself a nice gift, winning with 9:2 over Wojciech Szewczyk (POL). Unheralded Roy Stolk (NED) powered past Andrey Seroshtan (RUS) with 9:3 and also proceeds to the winner’s qualification round. Mark Gray (GBR) defeated Steve Leisen (LUX) with a clear and unchallenged victory of 9:3.
Matches will continue tomorrow at 09:00 with the third loser’s round.
All matches can be viewed LIVE at www.kozoom.com. Up to 11 tables in HiRes quality are providing you with all the action of the event. You do not miss out one single match! Join today!
More information about participants, schedules, achievements, rankings, etc can be found on the event website www.eurotouronline.com
The event will be hosted by the European Pocket Billiard Federation EPBF and organized by International Billiard Promotion Foundation IBPF.
Mario He (AUT) juts made his way through to the semi finals at the Dynamic Billard Dutch Open in Leende, The Netherlands.
In the round of the last 16 players, he had a very tough match with Marcus Chamat (SWE). In the end, He had the better start in the day and won the match with 9:6. That brought him into the quarter-finals where he met Tony Drago (MALT). „The Tornado“ had just overpowered Daryl Peach (GBR) in the previous round with 9:8. At 8:8, Drago broke and ran the rack. However, the quarter-final was a clear affair in favor of He. The Austrian won 9:4 and booked his seat in the semi-finals where he will meet Nikos Ekonomopoulos from Greece.
Another Greek contestant in the semi-finals is Alexander Kazakis. He managed to get to the semis with victories over Nick Van Den Berg (NED) 9:7 and Francisco Diaz-Pizarro (ESP), also 9:7.
Kazakis will have to deal with Mark Gray (GBR) in the semifinal match.
Three out of 11 tables can be watched LIVE throughout the event on www.kozoom.com. The event will be hosted by the European Pocket Billiard Federation EPBF and organized by International Billiard Promotion, IBP. For further information, please check the event website at www.eurotouronline.com or contact the EPBF press office at press@epbf.com
112 Men, 48 Women and 17 Wheelchair players have entered the 8-ball individuals at the 2014 Dynamic Billard European Championships in order to grab the title in their respective division.
Defending Champion David Alcaide (ESP) seems to be hard to stop at this year's Dynamic Billard European Championships. After taking the 10-ball title earlier this week, he is right on track in the 8-ball as well. With victories over Vincent Facquet (FRA) 8:4, Marcus Chamat (SWE) 8:3 and Alex Montpellier (FRA) 8:4, he made his way to the stage of the final 32 players where he will meet his fellow countryman Francisco Sanchez Ruiz (ESP) tomorrow morning at 09:00 local time. A big upset happened in the match between Konstantin Stepanov (RUS) and Georg Hoeberl (AUT). The Austrian eliminated the Russian superstar with 8:6 from the event. Somehow, these Austrians seem to be in a perfect shape these days. Jürgen Jenisy (AUT) ousted Tomasz Kaplan (POL) 8:5 from the 8-ball event. Probably the biggest surprise was the victory of Ioan Ladanyi (ROM) over 10-Ball World Champion Hudji See (NED) with 8:0 ! A whitewash for the World Champion from a complete underdog! Albin Ouschan (AUT) could not follow his teammates in to the next round. He lost clearly with 2:8 to Jakub Koniar (SVK). Daryl Peach (GBR) was another famous victim of today's play. He had to bow to Christian Surdea (ROM) with 7:8. Two Romanians taking care of two major upsets. Niels Feijen (NED) just crossed the finish line with an 8:7 victory over Kasper Kristoffersen (DEN).
In the women's division, defending Champion Line Kjoersvik (NOR) is straight on track. She won her first two matches over Alice Marcotte (FRA) 6:0 and Eylul Kibaroglu (TUR) 6:3. She has booked her seat in the single elimination round of the last 16 players. Among others, she is joined by Tamara Peeters-Rademakers (NED) who surprisingly sent Oliwia Czuprynska (POL) to the loser's side with 6:4. All time favorite Jasmin Ouschan (AUT) has also secured her spot in the round of the last 16 players. She won over Claudia Kunz (SUI) 6:3 and Nathalie Seichter (NED) 6:0. Last year's runner-up Marika Poikkijoki (FIN) did not have smooth sailing today. She won her first match with Kynthia Orfanidis (NED) 6:3 but then fell to Martine Christiansen (NOR) 5:6. On the loser's side, Poikkijoki had to deal with Russian Anna Mazhirina (RUS). Mazhirina made too many potting errors and opened the way for Poikkijoki to win the match with 6:3. Kamila Khodjaeva (BEL) came up with some impressive 8-ball action today. She defeated Sandra Baumgartner (AUT) 6:4 and Kristina Schagan (GER) 6:1. The strong Polish women Katarzyna Wesolowska (POL) and Oliwia Czuprynska (POL) did not have too much luck in their game today. While Czuprynska managed to get back into the round of the last 16 players through the loser's round with a 6:4 victory over Veronika Hubrtova (CZE), Weslowska's 8-ball journey has ended for 2014. She lost to unheralded Severine Titaux (FRA) 5:6.
The wheelchair division saw all favorites making their way through to the quarter-finals today. Defending Champion Fred Dinsmore (IRE) started his journey today with a 5:2 victory over Aslam Abubaker (GBR). Then he just managed to defeat Leszek Blumczynski (POL) with 5:4 to book his seat among the final eight players. Multi-time European and World Champion Jouni Tähti (FIN) took down Joachim Schuler (GER) 5:1 and then Craig Welsh (GBR) 5:0. He was definitely in a good stroke all day long. Belgium's Kurt Deklerck (BEL) won over Tony Southern (GBR) 5:3 and then got the better of Tankred Volkmer (GER) with 5:4. Finally, Henrik Larsson (SWE) won his matches over Daniel Luton (GBR) 5:2 and David Himpe (BEL) 5:1. These four players can be considered the serious favorites in the wheelchair division. However, they will get an opponent from the loser's side and have to continue in single-elimination mode from tomorrow on to find out who will be the Champion in 8-ball.
Play will commence tomorrow morning 09:00 local time with the 8-ball competition. All results and more info can be found on www.epconline.eu. LIVEStream can be viewed at www.kozoom.com.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
For the fifth consecutive year the Longoni Benelux Open was staged at De Loft in Leuven (Belgium). With a guaranteed prize fund of € 10,000 and a coveted Longoni cup, the qualification rounds drew 167 entries. Elite players, such as reigning champion Daryl Peach, Niels Feijen, Ralf Souquet, Tony Drago, Nick Van Den Berg, Imran Majid and champion of the inaugural edition Andreas Roschkowsky, turned up to exhibit their spectacular showmanship.
After a long fought battle, from 9.00 am until past midnight, the new champion emerged: ‘El Niño’ Nick van den Berg. He defeated none other than ‘The Kaiser’ Ralf Souquet, who made his first appearance at the Longoni Benelux Open. The conditions were tough, tight pockets and ironically great weather, which made it tropically hot in the venue.
El Niño was still quite fresh, though, as he asked for the time, prior to the semi final. “It’s 11 o’clock”. Upon which he reacted flabbergasted: “Nooo… I thought it was only 8 o’clock”. Nick reached the final undefeated, ousting German upcoming young talent Can Salim, Dutch outsider Fauzi Halaby, Ralf Souquet to reach the quarter final and Imran Majid for the hot seat.
Ralf Souquet traveled a slightly longer road, ousting Belgian local hero Timour Khodaev in the first round, Kasper Kristoffersen from Denmark in the second, but losing to van den Berg in the third. On the one loss side, he showed no mercy against former champion Andreas Roschkowsky to reach the quarter final. He defeated ‘The Tornado’ Tony Drago to reach the semis and ‘The Terminator’ Niels Feijen for the other hot seat.
Again, Longoni’s player representative Niels Feijen came very close with his third place. Sofar, he’s been the most consistent with three spots in the final (2009, 2010 and 2012) and two third places (2011 and this year). Niels commented: “Played my almost worse game, all day. So, that's still a nice result. Was still totally drained from the USA trip, travel back, seven hour jetlag and the ten hour car ride to Holland. Had the mental energy of a three week old peanut butter sandwich, all day”. Well, wouldn’t we all like to play that ‘bad’.
The other semi finalist was up and coming Ivo Aarts from Holland, who has been displaying good form, lately, with a bronze medal at this year’s European Championships.
The great number of participants, the fantastic historic city of Leuven, the incredible weather, Longoni and co-sponsors Loontjens Biljarts, Iwan Simonis, Saluc, Kamui, Serge Das Billiards, De Loft Leuven, the Belgian federation and the Dutch Federation contributed to yet another great success of the Longoni Benelux Open.
