ANDERNOS - We are just 36 days away from the new year and Kozoom would like to look forward to the tournaments and matches which are coming up next week(s) with high class billiards and a lot of tension. The Belgians play their league matches today and tomorrow, on Sunday the Dutch league will show up in a full round. And then it's already looking forward to the Hurghada World Cup, some rounds in the national leagues and the traditional end of the year: the Christmas tournament in Zundert.
The billiard year 2013 can already be considered as Frédéric Caudron's year. The status of the Belgian all round player has been grown as the season progressed: no other three cushion player has left his mark on the season's end as the Belgian did, no one has won so many important titles and no one has spoiled the billiard fans all over the world with so many spectacular performances as the Belgian world champion and number one in the world.
In the first part of the year, Marco Zanetti was the star player. The Italian triumphed in the Masters in Lausanne, the last Agipi Masters, the European championship and the World Games. But in all those events and successes, Caudron finished closely in his footsteps, except in the World Games where the Belgian did not play.
For the next few weeks Kozoom made the calendar of important matches:
x World Cup in Hurghada (Egypt) 1 to December 7 (live on Kozoom).
The first week of December is reserved for the fifth and last World Cup of the year, in Hurghada, Egypt.
Torbjörn Blomdahl can't be catched up as the overall winner after two wins and one second place. He currently leads 104 points ahead of Jérémy Bury, Caudron is at 108.
x It was a fantastic World Cup season, kicked off in Antalya with Blomdahl's first victory and with a hitherto unprecedented abundance of matches of two average and more.
x Then the top players moved to the Korean World Cup with a victory for Dong Koong Kang, who made a long awaited Korean dream come true.
x The Peloponnese World Cup was a dazzling one-man show by Torbjörn Blomdahl, who crowned his victory with a new world record: an overall average of 2.739.
x The Swede even seemed on his way to a third victory in Medellin, Colombia, but this time he was stopped by Frédéric Caudron, who gave his world title, that he won in Antwerp a week before, even more shine.
x Dutch and Belgian league 25/26 November, 16/17 December and 22 December.
Both in the Netherlands and Belgium some final rounds will be played in the league. For the Netherlands, the year will close on 22 December, the Belgians end the year in the week before.
The champion team of Dallinga-Frans Bevers is the proud leader in the Netherlands and faces its main rival Partycentrum Osdorp next weekend in the big clash, with matches as Caudron-Jaspers and Leppens-Merckx on the program.
De Goeie Queue is the spacious leader in Belgium with a four points lead over BC Deurne.
x French three cushion competition: two games on November 28 (live on Kozoom).
On the second league day, the already legendary top team Agipi with Frédéric Caudron, Marco Zanetti, Jérémy Bury and Jean-Christophe Roux comes to the tables, in what may be seen (after Agipi director Claude Fath's retiring) as the farewell tour.
Five teams compete in France for the title, Agipi is automatically seeded, Andernos and Laxou are the main candidates for the playoffs. After a long pause (European team final in June), Kozoom returns to the Agipi arena for live broadcasting.
x Three cushion bundesliga , 9th and 10th round on 14 and December 15. In mid-December, the winter champion will be known: a battle between BCC Witten, Begisch-Gladbach and GT Buer.
x Christmas tournament in Zundert (Ned): 28-30 December (live on Kozoom).
The Christmas tournament in Zundert is the traditional closure of the year. The best Dutch and Belgian players meet in Biljartcentrum Den Hoek, where, as usually, one foreign key player will be invited.
Last year's winner is Frédéric Caudron with a record average of 2.172, ahead of Eddy Merckx and Tayfun Tasdemir.
And for this end seasoner, Kozoom will be there of course: all matches are broadcast live.