LIMA - Billiard player Ramón Rodriguez from Peru was on the podium at the World Championship three-cushion in Randers, 2002, where the same world title is at stake again next week. He also became internationally known for his big musical talents and his virtuosity to play many different instruments. In his city, Lima, Rodriguez still plays every day. The love for billiards is still deep in his heart, life is better than ever, but Ramón Rodriguez is worried about the penalties for 100 billiard players who performed at the Medellin tournament where he himself was among the participants. "It is unjustified that the Colombian federation is punishing the players so hard."
Kozoom asked him for an interview: Ramón Rodriguez (52) about billiards, music, life, his huge love for July and the suspensions in South America. ''Hi Kozoom, it's nice to have this interview after very long time. My life is good, and even better with July. We are together already 13 years, 1 month and 14 days and our happiness is growing day by day. I am a really lucky man. Believe me!''
Kozoom/Frits Bakker: How is billiards for the moment? You will not make your come-back in Randers. And music, still performing?
Ramón Rodriguez: It's not a secret that I am not playing the world tournaments like a few years ago. I am just playing the championship in my country, the Pan-American championships. And when I am qualified, the World championships individual and teams, not in Randers this year, unfortunately. The music is an essential part of my life. I will never quit from it. I play several instruments every day at home and sometimes, I play professionally as a session musician for recordings of well-known artists in Peru. And I also play as member of a band in concerts.
Kozoom/FB: What are your results in Peru throughout the years. How many times did you play Viersen you're your national team?
Ramón: ,,I took the national three cushion title 13 times and was 6 times in the team for Viersen. The last time, after Randers in 2002, I was on the podium at the World Championship in Ecuador, 2007, where Ryuuji Umeda won the title beating Dick Jaspers, Dani Sánchez and me for the gold medal.
Kozoom/FB: How is your company, RaJu, named to Ramón and July?
Ramón: ,,We have organized with our RAJU company the biggest 3C Pan American Grand Prix starting 2007. The last one was in 2017, but unfortunately, the conditions imposed by CPB to organize these tournaments are increasingly demanding. Currently, for the 3C CPB ranking only the last two Pan American championships and the last two national championships are counted. There is no Pan American Grand Prix anymore. Some years ago, there were up to four GP's with points.Obviously, nobody wants to organize these tournaments, they prefer private tournaments without points using cloths and balls of different brands. Something is not working well.
Ramón and July, happy times together
Kozoom/FB: Still live in the Peruvian capital, Lima of course? Which billiard club?
Ramón: I have always lived in Lima, which is the city where I was born. I don't go to a specific billiard club, sometimes I visit several clubs. My training place is the Peruvian Billiards Federation with its headquarters located in the National Stadium.
Kozoom/FB: There are penalties announced and coming up for players who performed in the Medellin tournament. And you were one of them. What's going on Ramón, how bad is it for players?
Ramón: In fact, the Pan-American Billiards Confederation (CPB) already sanctioned by a 'Communiqué' to all players who are members of a Federation affiliated to CPB and who participated in Feria de las Flores tournament in Medellin, Colombia. The punishment for all these players consists of the loss of 25% of their CPB ranking points. Of course, also for me, I am one of them. Moreover, and as it is known, Alexander Salazar lost his right to participate at the UMB World championship in Randers. That was also a sanction from CPB. According to the Communiqué, Salazar had to be replaced by the next player in the Final standings at the Pan-American championship in Lima. I've got the 9th place, but I also participated in Medellin, that's why the nr. 10, Christian Hernandez from Mexico, was considered to replace Salazar.
Kozoom/FB: What was the real reason for the Colombian federation to announce the sanctions?
Ramón: The reason was that the Feria de las Flores tournament didn't have the authorization from CPB because the organizer wanted to use Royal Pro cloths and Diamond balls instead of Aramith and Simonis, which are the sponsors of CPB. But the strange thing is that, in the years 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, this tournament was also played on Royal Pro cloths and Diamond balls. Many players from several CPB affiliated countries participated in those years and no one was ever sanctioned. I played this year, because I knew that the conditions were equal to the previous years. If there were no sanctions before, why shouldn't it be the same this year? But it was not like that. We all thought that nobody would be sanctioned. More than 200 players were on the list, only 100 were sanctioned, I really do not know why. But I suppose, because the tournament was open to all players, perhaps not all 296 are affiliated members of the Colombian federation FECOLBI.
Kozoom/FB: The Colombian players have been punished for a one year penalty (Aguilar even 5 years, Salazar and Campiño 3), is it right?
Ramón: The official FECOLBI document stipulates a penalty of 2 years for Carlos Campiño, 3 years for Alexander Salazar and 5 years for Mauricio Aguilar.
Kozoom/FB: And the foreign players, like you, Luis Aveiga and some Mexicans?
Ramón: Apart from the sanction by CPB, the loss of 25% of our CPB ranking points. The federations of foreign players could sanction their players. I asked the President of my federation and he told me that they will sanction me, but he confirm that the Peruvian Billiards Federation does not have its own regulations, so can not use the CPB regulations pretending to punish me. Luis Aveiga says that he is currently suspended by his federation for another reason. He says that he has already complied with demonstrating that he has not committed any fault, but his federation does not yet want to lift the penalty.
Ramón Rodriguez, 13 times champion in his country
Kozoom/FB: What does it mean for you internationally now?
Ramón: I did not plan playing World cups for the time being. For me it is very clear that the sanction that CPB has imposed on me (25% reduction of my points) does not take away my right to participate in all official tournaments worldwide. The reason I will not play the World championships in Randers and Viersen, is because I did not qualify.
Kozoom/FB: Have you ever been punished before in your long career?
Ramón: I have never been punished in my entire sports career. I represent my country internationally since 1991. Even though CPB's punishment for me is not severe, of course it affects my image as an athlete.
Thank you so much, Ramón, keep up the good life, music and billiards. Big hug to July.
Thank you, many thanks and regards to the Kozoom team. I hope to see you all in the near future and thank you so much for this interview.
Ramón Rodriguez, playing music is an essential part of my life
Ramón Rodriguez, entertaining the audience during one of the World Cups in Sluiskil