NEW YORK - For the first time, he stood on the highest podium, Sameh Sidhom from Egypt, with the overall victory in the Carom Cafe tournament in New York. Twice he was second in a World Cup, this year and last year, once third place at a World championship, in the year Torbjörn Blomdahl won in Randers. But winning a major event was never reserved for the Egyptian, whose good and promising results put him in the top five of the world rankings.
This Sunday, Sameh Sidhom was crowned winner at the Carom Cafe in New York, however the tournament has been severely devalued by the absence of many top international players. But winning in New York counts and is nice on the record of a world-class player. Sameh Sidhom this Sunday beat another outsider in New York, Luis Aveiga from Ecuador, who is never among the top players in world tournaments but has been among the better South American players for many years. His highlight was at the semi-finals on Sunday, in which he eliminated world champion Tayfun Tasdemir in a stunning final sprint 40-38 in 21 innings. That took the eccentric billiard player into the final against Sameh Sidhom, who himself celebrated victory in the semi-finals against Pedro Piedrabuena 40-35 in 27.
That final stage at the Carom Cafe saw a lot of exciting games, including Piedrabuena's resounding victory in the quarter-finals against Alexander Salazar 40-14 in 11/10 innings. It was one of the best games of the tournament. The American announced himself as favorite on the stroke but could not stop Sidhom in the semi-finals.
Sameh Sidhom, from the country of Edmund Soussa, the first world champion in three-cushion in 1928 and 1929, is the first African to win in New York. The Egyptian from Cairo, who still very sporadically filling in for a colleague as a dentist, got through the second round in New York with one loss against Muammer Rahmet from Turkey, but with the highest average 1.615 and highest run 16. In the top sixteen, Sidhom won against Raymon Groot (40-35 in 34, in the top eight against Lee 40-13 in 23 and in the half against Piedrabuena (40-35 in 27).
Luis Aveiga was second in the first group stage following Ali Glbay from Turkey, third in the second stage and beat Pineda (40-37 in 31) in the knock-outs, Patino with 40-30 in 23 in the best eight and Tayfun Tasdemir in the half 40-38 in 21.
Of the other contenders, Roland Forthomme lost his match in the best 16 to Tae Kyu Lee 40-24 in 21 and Ricky Carranco in the best eight to Tayfun Tasdemir 40-12 in 20.
Sameh Sidhom and Luis Aveiga, the two final players in Carom Cafe