Artistic
DOETINCHEM - Dutch player Sander Jonen, two-time world champion in artistic billiards, makes his comeback in an official tournament this week. In the Euro Grand Prix in Doetinchem (Netherlands) he tries to qualify for the main event. The CEB Grand will be played in De Veemarkt in Doetinchem from Thursday 19 to Sunday, June 22.
For the European tournament, 32 players have signed in. The entire European top is led by Belgian Eric Daelman, Jean Reverchon, Serdar Gümüs, Bernd Singer and Erik Vervliet. The qualification starts on Thursday with six groups of four players to advance for the final rounds. The top ranked players are automatically seeded.
Sander Jonen (40) was diagnosed with a malignant tumor in his jaw at the start of this year. He had a surgery and was treated with chemotherapy. ,,I feel good now, but I still have to recover'', he says on the day before the tournament. ,,I can have normal food instead of fluid food since a few days now. And so I have to recuperate. I must say that I didn't practice for one hour, so let's wait and see what this new start brings to me. I'm looking forward to play again.''
The European champion Eric Daelman from Belgium is one of the favorites for the victory. Jean Reverchon is the number two in the rankings. The Frenchman won this year's last CEB Grand Prix in Marseille.
Furthermore, the Turk Serdar Gümüs, the German champion Bernd Singer, Belgian champion Erik Vervliet, Frenchman Kevin Tran, Erik Vijverberg (champion of the Netherlands) and the Spanish champion Xavier Fonollosa are high ranked.
Among the qualifiers are the French federation president Jean-Paul Sinanian, Belgian wheelchair player Johan Grimon and the promising young Dutch Jop de Jong.
The group formats:
Group A:
Erik Vijverberg (Nl), Jean-Luc Miller (Fr), Martin van Rhee (Nl), Christoph Schäfer (Ger).
Group B:
Xavier Fonellosa (Sp), Sander Jonen (Nl), Marc Janssen (Bel), Willem Schreuder (Nl).
Group C:
Walter Bax (Bel), Heinz-Walter Kohlmeier (Ger), Roger Everaert (Bel), Robert van Veenendaal (NL).
Group D:
Thomas Ahrens (Ger), Baris Cin (Tur), Madou Toure (Fr), Jop de Jong (NL).
Group E:
László Tohr (Hun), Dávid Keller (Hun), Jean-Paul Sinanian (Fr), Johan Vandommele (Bel).
Group F:
Franz Heigl (Ger), Rene Dericks (Nl), Miquel Duran Argemi (Sp), Johan Grimon (Bel).
The main event starts on Saturday (June 21) and is broadcast live on Kozoom. The eighth-finals are at 11.00, the quarter-finals at 18.00. On Sunday the semifinals at 11.00 and the final at 14.00.