VEGHEL - The champion Dani Sánchez did not get the national anthem he deserved, but the Spanish player surely took the spotlights. The World Cup winner in Veghel after the final match against Korean Jung Han Heo (50-42 in 28) received thunderous applause from the Dutch crowd and showed his happiness for his second consecutive World Cup win following Antalya 2020. Dani Sánhez returns to top three in the world after having been away from it many years for several reasons. The record holder of the best World Cup average in history (2,777, Luxor 2017) and the four-time world champion has added another stunning success to his palmares.
On the podium, the Spaniard topped Jung Han Heo, whom he defeated by a better final sprint, Tayfun Tasdemir and the other Korean, Jun Tae Kim. The European/Korean final clash crowned the event that ended the long Corona break. Dani Sánchez (47) made the balance for himself at the end: ''I've never been away, I've always believed in myself, but this success means a lot to me. The world top is on the move, the averages go up every year. I hope that this generation of top players can keep it up in the years to come, no matter how tough this sport is, mentally and physically. I won this final at the end with a two hundred heartbeat.''
Three major wins in a row have raised Sánchez's status. The Spaniard won his last three official tournaments: the World Cup in Antalya, the European national team championships (Antalya, with Ruben Legazpi) and the World Cup in Veghel this week. For that, Sánchez had to beat Semih Sayginer, the Turk, in a murderous fight, Dick Jaspers, the number one in the world, and finally Jung Han Heo.
The final was a match that went up and down from the start. The Korean scored two runs of eight, Sánchez one of seven in the final stage, but each time the balance was restored with intervals of 20-18, 31-30, 42-42 and finally a last, decisive five run of the Spaniard, after which Heo cramped up in the final fight. Dani Sánchez about his opponent: ''He surely is a wonderful player and cool fighter.'' But talking about fighting spirit and character, there are just few in the world of Dani Sánchez calibre.
The final ranking (top 12):
1 Dani Sánchez (Spain) 12-1,757-12
2 Jung Han Heo (Korea) 11-2.012-12
3 Tayfun Tasdemir (Turkey) 9-1,768-9
3 Jun Tae Kim (Korea) 7-1,556-12
5 Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) 8-2.029-12
6 Jeffrey Jorissen (Netherlands) 8-1,833-12
7 Sameh Sidhom (Egypt) 7-1.515-7
8 Torbjörn Blomdahl (Sweden) 6-1,572-9
9 Marco Zanetti (Italy) 6-1,791-10
10 Eddy Merckx (Belgium) 6-1,791-10
11 Semih Sayginer 5-1,673-12
12 Martin Horn 5-1,818-8
Before the match for World Cup gold, the first semi-final match was one with a lot of tension in it, the other was a kind of walk-over. Dani Sánchez had a magic finish again, just like in his previous match against Jaspers. The Spaniard dominated the match with Jun Tae Kim, who could come back to 11 points halfway. Sánchez' strong weapon put an end to the match with a final run of 9 for a 50-30 score. Jung Han Heo and Tayfun Tasdemir came up for a nice fight, the Turk led 10-4, 17-9, Heo first came in the match at 19-18 and 28-29 and took the initiative at 36-30. There was balance one more time at 43-43, after which Heo got the finish in sight with five (48-43) and two innings later went out on 50-47 in 23.
Dick Jaspers was the best winner in the first knock-out round with sixteen players. The Dutchman beat Sung-Won Choi in 18 innings. Torbjörn Blomdahl was the better of Eddy Merckx, Dani Sánchez, in a thrilling last part, won against Semih Sayginer 50-49.
The race to the best four on the final day was the end of Jeffrey Jorissen' adventure. The Hague player lost to Tayfun Tasdemir 50-39 in 21. Dani Sánchez had an amazing final shot against Jaspers with a closing run of 12 (50-35 in 21/20), Jung Han Heo knocked down Blomdahl, the world champion, (50-36 in 26/25) and Jun Tae Kim was the second Korean to move up to the final day with a victory over Sameh Sidhom 50-24 in 22/21.
The first new start of the World Cup cycle paved the way for the world's top players to get back into competition. The reacquaintance of the players, organizers, officials and crowd was refreshing. With 140 participants, many hours of broadcasting on Ziggo Sport TV and full stands, the arena seemed like it used to be, although the Corona crisis is rearing its head again and making expectations more sombre.
The long silence of the cycle has brought about some minor metamorphoses. The sporting rules have not undergone many mutations: the system in the knock-outs had already been brought up to 50 caroms in the last World Cup. Among the players themselves, not everything was equally recognisable. Dani Sánchez entered the event with a new look and about 15 kilos more of weight. Marco Zanetti, plagued by his injury for months, has lost almost as many kilos. The new generation, with Jun Tae Kim, Jeffrey Jorissen, Sam van Etten, Jieu Han and a new Korean face in Ju Hin Ahn, is eager to break through. What a pity that the sympathetic Vietnamese could not travel to this World Cup due to the crisis.
The final stage of two years ago for this World Cup in Veghel quickly disappeared from view. The winner Haeng Jik Kim was eliminated by a brilliant home player, Jeffrey Jorissen, the revelation of the tournament. Antonio Montes, also semi-finalist in 2019, was thrown out of the tournament on one carom, Lütfi Cenet could not show the form of the previous World Cup.
Murat Gökman, Omer Karakurt and Robinson Morales led the first day rankings, Ji Hun Ahn, 40, but virtually unknown, was the most striking player of the preliminaries. Roland Forthomme, Dion Nelin and Omer Karakurt were the top-three in the final qualification. That led to the eight flights of four to launch the main draw. The eight winners on that first, long day were Dick Jaspers (6 points, 1.904), Marco Zanetti (6, 1.967), Eddy Merckx (6, 1.643), Jung Han Heo (5, 2.307), Ji Hun Ahn (5, 2.458), Martin Horn (5, 1.500), Jeffrey Jorissen (6, 2.069) and Semih Sayginer (6, 1.875).
For the homeland Sam van Etten, the debutant, shone with a nice 1.440 on average and Therese Klompenhouwer, the other wildcard, did not have a best day with 0.851. The best known players who were eliminated on the first day were Jérémy Bury, Dion Nelin, Roland Forthomme, Lütfi Cenet, Haeng Jik Kim, Murat Naci Coklu and Robinson Morales.
This year's first World Cup - and the second in Veghel after the first in 2019 - drew a total of 2.750 spectators and was lucky that the final was not played on Sunday. Due to the newly announced Dutch Corona measures, the final day otherwise would have been played without an audience. The event attracted a total of 2750 spectators over all days. The BEN organisation also has a place on the UMB calendar for 2022, 2023 and 2024 after an agreement with the main sponsor Jumbo.
The new world ranking after Veghel:
