BRESCIA - The Italian organizers of the Longoni Grand Prix for players under 21 managed to find a new venue for the second Grand Prix tournament. For nine young players on the circuit, the preliminary rounds start today, Friday 4 August, for this Grand Prix Next Gen. The new venue, after the initial playing venue was hit by a storm, is Campomarte in Brescia. Turkish players Burak Hashas, the reigning world champion and Seymen Ozbas and German Amir Ibraimov are the contenders for wins.
The tournament in the Italian city is the third and last to count towards the rankings. Three players will be rewarded at the end of the season with a wildcard to next season's European Championships. The European under-21 ranking is led by four Turkish players: Denizcan Akkoka, Abdullah Kaya, Burak Hashas and Seymen Ozbas. The next player at number 5 is Nikolaus Kogelbauer, who is currently playing in Carom Café in New York. The playing date of this Grand Prix is also inconvenient for other players at the top of the rankings due to school holidays. The nine players are divided into two groups: 1 of 5, 1 of 4.
The group formats:
Group A:
Burak Hashas (Turkey)
Nathan Duriez (France)
Daniel Kristiansen (Denmark)
Luca Philipoom (Belgium)
Turia Paolo (Italy)
Group B:
Seymen Ozbas (Turkey)
Amir Ibraimov (Germany)
Joris van 't Zelfden (Netherlands)
Tangui Duriez (France)
Friday 14.30 first matches. Saturday from 10.00, Sunday from 11.00 semi-finals. Final at 14.00.
Matches broadcast live on Kozoom.