PORTO – The heatwave in the city where the World Cup three-cushion billiards started this Sunday also affects the players in the Portuguese capital Porto in the coming days. The first qualifying players were sent to a sports centre without air conditioning and without refreshments. Carlos Crespo, the Spaniard with the best scores, was the very best in temperatures over 40 degrees at the billiard table. Two Belgians and two Frenchmen were among the survivors on that first day of play. The world federation announced that, for the first time, players are allowed to play in short-sleeved T-shirts. It was only a band-aid on the wound. ‘It's inhumane to make us play here,’ grumbled Jef Philipoom, the Belgian top player and former world champion.
The consequences of the immense heat are particularly evident in the scores of the first qualifiers. Carlos Crespo played remarkably well with a match of 2,500 on average and 1,818 over two matches. Apart from him, only one other player, Alexander Salazar from Colombia, just managed to reach an average of 1, which is far below the level in the other World Cups. The home player Antonio Azevedo seemed to be the most affected, with 21 hard points in 60 innings: good for 0.350, an average for which a café billiard player would almost be ashamed of.
The world federation UMB, through its president Mr Farouk Barki, announced in advance:
‘Important announcement Porto World Cup. Due to the high temperatures currently prevailing in Porto and northern Portugal, which are expected to continue in the coming days, the UMB will, as an exception, allow participants to wear short-sleeved polo shirts. In addition, the rule applies that tattoos on the arms of players must not be visible.’
The location in Porto, where matches were previously played in a billiard centre at FC Porto's football stadium, had to be changed due to an important handball match. In the Pavilhao Municipal do Lagarteiro, however, the air conditioning is not working, or there is no air conditioning at all. It fell like a hot blanket over the players who entered the arena on the first day. High temperatures (40 degrees and more) meant that the level of play was lower than ever.
The first day of play in Porto featured one top match by Carlos Crespo with 30 caroms in 12 turns. Furthermore, there were mainly unusually long matches, some lasting up to 75 turns.
The sixteen group winners on Sunday:
- Carlos Crespo 4 – 1.818
- Alexander Salazar 4 – 1.034
- Miguel Canton 4 – 0.983
- Fernando Silva 4-0.869
- Luis Pinto 4 – 0.869
- Goncalo Santos 4 – 0.845
- Norbert Roestel 4 – 0.833
- Jean Reverchon 4 – 0.833
- Nguyen Dinh Luan 4 – 0.779
- Rui Edgar 4 – 0.779
- Tangui Duriez 4 – 0.705
- Henk Blauwblomme 4 – 0.612
- Anibal Silva 4 – 0.594
- Fabrice Bouchat 3 – 0.659
- Joseba Escribano 2 – 0.945
- Ufuk Kapusiz 2 – 0.880
Henk Blauwblomme, one of two Belgians who survived the first day