BAD WILDUNGEN – Martin Horn captured the German three-cushion championship title for the 15th time this weekend. The 54-year-old player proved once again unbeatable in his country, where he has been the sole ruler for many years. Horn is also enjoying one of the best years of his international career, including the European title and World Cup victory in Antwerp. In the final in Bad Wildungen on Sunday, Martin Horn defeated an outsider: Carsten Raspel, who moved up to second place, but lost with a comfortable score (40-13 in 19). In the semifinals, Martin Horn defeated Tay-Dien Truong 40-26 in 25. The other final was won by Raspel against Amir Ibraimov: 40-25 in 30.
The champion's overall average was 1.803, Horn’s highest run being 12. This put him far above the other participants in the championship, where Ronny Lindemann was absent due to illness. In the preliminary rounds, played to 30 points, Horn defeated Simon Henk Blondeel in 12 and 15 innings, among others. Amir Ibraimov won a thrilling battle with Tom Löwe 30-29 in 23. Carsten Raspel defeated Thomas Kerl but lost to Lukas Stamm. Tobias Bouerdick and Bajram Ibraimov drew.
In the next phase, Horn defeated Blondeel 40-11 in 23 matches. Tom Löwe bested Ramazan Durdu, Tay-Dien Truong was the better of Andreas Niehaus, Bajram Ibraimov defeated Lukas Stamm, Carsten Raspel bested Macel Back, Tobias Bouerdick defeated Aygün Cin, and Amir Ibraimov beat Sven Temming.
The winners in the quarterfinals were Martin Horn (against Tom Löwe, 40-25 in 28), Tay-Dien Truong (against Martin Witt, 40-35), Carsten Raspel (against Bajram Ibraimov, 40-26), and Amir Ibraimov (against Tobias Bouerdick, 40-36 in 30).
The final match was between Martin Horn and Carsten Raspel for gold and silver.
After the championship, Martin Horn reflected on his fantastic year so far. The German top player won the European Championship (his first European title) in Ankara, finished third at the World Games, won the World Cup in Antwerp, finished fifth at the World Championship, and played a Bundesliga record match: 50 in 11 innings. "That's why I now have a solid position in the top ten of the world rankings," he proudly states. His expectations for the coming years are: "I want to continue competing with the world's best and hope to win another major tournament."
Martin Horn expects to play for Germany at the World Team Championship in Viersen with either Amir Ibraimov or Tom Löwe. "The German Federation still has to decide that."
Top of the rankings in Bad Wildungen, Germany:
- Martin Horn 12-1.803-12
- Carsten Raspel 8-1.011-8
- Amir Ibraimov 8-1.092-6
- Tay-Dien Truong 6-0.905-7
- Bajram Ibraimov 5-0.775-5
- Martin Witt 4-0.837-9
- Tobias Bouerdick 5-0.978-7
- Tom Löwe 4-1.068-7