GURI - In a month's time, Jérémy Bury's world has been put upside down. Before New York, the 35-year old Frenchman had never won a major tournament. In Guri, where he beat Vietnamese Quyet Chien Tran in the final (40-30 in 20 innings), he won his second big prize and his first World Cup. It is a new pearl in the crown of the player who withstood the invasion of Koreans and Vietnamese, and made it back into the world's top ten with the ranking points won in Korea. Jérémy Bury was the big winner in the cauldron of the Guri gymnasium, where some thousand spectators first saw him eliminate the young Korean hero Myung Woo Cho and then finish the job in the final.
,,It made me so happy that I could win here, as well as in New York. And how about this coincidence: on the day that I won in New York, my little daughter turned five. Today, on the day of my win in Guri, my wife Isabelle and I have been married for exactly six years. That makes these days even better.'' The career of the Frenchman has hit the rapids, since earlier this year he was also in the final of the Luxor World Cup, where he lost to Eddy Merckx.
It is an unexpected and remarkable metamorphosis. Two years ago, when Agipi stopped sponsoring billiards, the player from Paris even considered to quit playing at the highest level. He first went back to his teaching job, but soon rediscovered his true ambitions. He is the number one player in his country, and has now found part-time employment as trainer / coach of the young French talents, which has revived his own play.
The reputation of a slow player who studies the positions from all angles has changed into admiration. Both in New York and in Guri, Bury played well, often offensive and quicker than in the past. His attitude has not changed, his fighting spirit is admirable. ,,I have to put the maximum energy into my play, that is my strong point'', he said between the semifinal and the final on Sunday. But more than before, Bury can close his mind for things that go on around the table. It was telling, when he said: ,,I love the atmosphere here, the cheers and the noises, even if the people are not always clapping for me. It is a great and fair crowd here in Korea, and it is a joy to play here.''
The Frenchman made it to the final with victories over Xuan Cuong Ma (40-11 in 15), Eddy Merckx (40-23 in 22), Javier Palazón (40-34 in 22) and Myung Woo Cho (40-24 in 20). His last opponent, Vietnamese Quyet Chien Tran, quickly lost the initiative in the final: 15-9 after a run of 10 by Bury in the second inning. The Frenchman improved on his lead after the break, but Tran recovered with a run of nine to make it 31-27. In the home stretch though, Bury would not be denied. The Vietnamese made it to the final with wins over Choong Bok Lee (40-30 in 25), Tayfun Tasdemir (40-21 in 14), Torbjörn Blomdahl (40-40 in 18, shoot-outs 3-2) and Dick Jaspers in the semifinal (40-24 in 23).
Quyet Chien Tran, father of a daughter, with a second child underway, had his most glorious moments against Blomdahl and Jaspers. The win over the Dutchman was a catharsis for Vietnamese billiards. As Jaspers said before the match: ,,I have played Vietnamese players so many times, and never lost.'' ,,We have not forgotten that in the last World Cup in Ho Chi Minh, Jaspers eliminated four Vietnamese players in a row', said Tran, still shaken from his winning performance in the semifinal. ,,The papers will say, that this was the revenge for all the Vietnamese.''
Dick Jaspers, looking for reasons to explain his one weak performance after a string of strong matches in 20, 9 and 14 innings (he was then cruising at 2.790, near the world record), confessed: ,,I felt my energy level was lower, and it affected my stroke. It shows you once again, how exhausting it can be to play billiards on the other side of the globe.'' Jérémy Bury had made 9000 dollars in New York and now added 5500 euro in Guri. On the podium, he was accompanied by Quyet Chien Tran, Dick Jaspers and Myung Woo Cho.
The highlights of the Guri World Cup, in chronological order:: The matches of Tolgahan Kiraz (30 in 10), Jun Tae Kim (30 in 11) and Sang Dae Lee (30 in 12 and 11) during the first days of qualification. The kick start of Jérémy Bury on the final qualifying day, with matches of 40 in 14 and 17 innings (2.580), Lütfi Cenet (40 in 13) and Murat Naci Coklu (40 in 14). Javier Palazón who rose to great heights in the first K.O. round when he beat Marco Zanetti (40-31 in 12, 3.333). Torbjörn Blomdahl started the tournament with 40 in 13, Dick Jaspers started with a run of 16. Sung-Won Choi eliminated Frédéric Caudron in the first round, Dani Sánchez found his Waterloo against Ruben Legazpi. Dick Jaspers was superhuman in his match against Adnan Yüksel in the last sixteen. The Dutchman won 40-12 in 9, a 4.444 average and the best match of the tournament.
Torbjörn Blomdahl had a miraculous escape against Jung Han Heo, who missed on match point six times and then lost the shootout. Vietnamese Quyet Chien Tran then ended Blomdahl's quest in the quarterfinal, despite a good comeback by the Swede who lost the shootout 3-2. Then there was Myung Woo Cho's last match, the semifinal against Bury. The eighteen year-old promise, who does not hide the fact that he practices ten hours a day, received a standing ovation from the crowd. He first made it to the main draw of a World Cup, and made an unforgettable impression.
The tournament in the Korean billiard capital, with its thousands of rooms and billiard culture, must be considered one of the best World Cups in years. The stands in the Guri gymnasium filled up on the closing days, with some five hundred spectators. The many stands outside the building, where billiard articles were sold and promoted, added to the atmosphere that makes Korea different from anywhere else in the world.
The country's major sports network (MBC) pulled out all the stops to show the matches on the final days, live. Millions of viewers in the country could follow the World Cup for eight hours a day, with reruns at prime time (20.00). UMB-president Farouk Barki said during and after the tournament how pleased he was with the cooperation between UMB and the new Korean federation. ,,We have had many good conversations and cleared away misunderstandings. The relationship between UMB and KBF is better than it has ever been", said Barki.
The new world ranking:
1) Frédéric Caudron 404 (-)
2) Torbjörn Blomdahl 376 (-)
3) Dick Jaspers 341 (+1)
4) Eddy Merckx 327 (-1)
5) Marco Zanetti 240 (-)
6) Dani Sanchez 229 (-)
7) Sameh Sidhom 229 (-)
8) Nikos Polychronopoulos 226 (-)
9) Jérémy Bury 206 (+8)
10) Tran Quyet Chien 185 (+6)
11) Dong Koong Kang 185 (-1)
12) Jae Ho Cho 182 (-3)
13) Roland Forthomme 174 (-2)
14) Tayfun Tasdemir 170 (-1)
15) Haeng Jik Kim 165 (-3)
16) Jung Han Heo 159 (-2)
17) Murat Naci Coklu 156 (-2)
(The seventeen are seeded directly for the World championship in Bordeaux)
18) Lütfi Cenet 135
19) Sung Won Choï 129
20) Pedro Piedrabuena 127
21) Adnan Yüksel 121
22) Nguyen Quoc Nguyen 121
23) Huberney Catano 107
24) Riad Nady 105
25) Choong Bok Lee 102
26) Semih Sayginer 101
Jérémy Bury in his semi final in which he outplayed the Korean youngster Myung Woo Cho
Myung Woo Cho and the referee in full concentration during the semi final
Myung Woo Cho tells his glorious story to the Korean television
Quyet Chien Tran on his way to beat Jaspers and reach the final for the first time in his career
Dick Jaspers bows his head in the last innings against Tran
Hundreds of spectators in the row to buy a ticket for the final day
The full stands during the final days in Guri
One of the female referees at the World Cup in Guri