There were four champions crowned at the Kalevi Hall in Tallinn as the 8-ball tournaments played to a conclusion at the Predator European Pool Championships. There were gold medals for Jasmin Ouschan (Austria) and Stefan Kasper (Germany) in the women’s and men’s divisions, respectively, while Dennis Laszkowski (Germany) triumphed in the Under 23 division, and medal machine Jouni Tahti (Finland) was the wheelchair champion.
Kasper defeated Wojciech Szewczyk (Poland) 8-5 in a match that was hard-fought throughout before Kasper edged away to clinch his first-ever European Championships individual gold, adding to the silver he won in the 10-ball division.
“It feels unbelievable. I can’t describe what’s going around in my mind. I hadn’t thought about winning the European Championship in 8-ball because I hate 8-ball—I still hate it! But, yeah, it’s amazing.
“I think I broke pretty good and he made two easy mistakes which gave me a chance and I almost played perfect. I’m going to give it a go and hopefully I can win 9-ball, teams… and the Euro Tour as well!”
Men’s Medals
Gold – Stefan Kasper (GER)
Silver – Wojciech Szewczyk (POL)
Bronze – Mark Magi (EST), Tobias Bongers (GER)
Jasmin Ouschan, returning to the European Championships after an absence of six years, reacquainted herself with the top of the podium after defeating Pia Filler 6-2 in the final match. Ouschan is a record-holding medallist at the ECs, and she has now added a gold and a bronze (in 10-ball) to her already crowded trophy cabinet.
Commented Jasmin: “I am feeling great and it feels great to have that title. It’s been a few years—2019 was my last EC—and coming to the European Championships as a player with so many titles, you feel you can lose to everybody as they expect you to win at least one, so now I’m just relieved.
“So far, a bronze and gold, so I’m really happy. I was struggling a bit with my game so I’m glad I could pull it off in the final. Right now, I’m just happy. It’s my 28th title now, so it’s pretty special. I feel more comfortable at 10-ball and 9-ball, so I definitely see a lot of chances in 9-ball. The first match is tomorrow, so I’m going to try and get some energy back and in 9-ball everything is possible,” she added.
Women’s Medals
Gold – Jasmin Ouschan (AUT)
Silver – Pia Filler (GER)
Bronze – Ana Gradisnik (SLO), Chantal Stadler (GER)
Jouni Tahti and Henrik Larsson have a decades-long rivalry in the wheelchair division, and this time it was Finland’s Tahti who edged the gold medal in a match that went all the way. Neither player could assert themselves on the game, although Larsson looked the favourite as he led 3-1 at the halfway point. Tahti levelled it up, before the Swede reached the hill at 4-3, but to his full credit, Tahti took the final two racks for the gold medal.
Wheelchair Medals
Gold – Jouni Tahti (FIN)
Silver – Henrik Larsson (SWE)
Bronze – Vladimir Gjorgjieski (MKD), Emil Malanowski (POL)
Dennis Laszkowski romped home to his sixth individual gold medal in Junior European Championships as he defeated Silvan Starkermann 8-1 in the Under 23s to seal victory. The 19-year-old was a winner in the 8-ball men’s division at the European Championships in 2023 and has the potential to be a major force in pool in the coming years.
Commented Dennis: “It feels amazing because at the beginning of the tournament I didn’t play good at all. I made so many mistakes! Today in the quarter-finals I was playing against my countryman Yuma Dorner and I didn’t start that well too and at 7-6 for me, he admitted a foul shot that no one saw—so fair play to Yuma Dorner, unbelievable.
“In the final, I was lucky enough that the break was working very well and I found the spot, and 8-ball is more about the break. I’m playing in the Under 23 9-ball, so hopefully I can continue,” he added.
Under 23 Medals
Gold – Dennis Laszkowski (GER)
Silver – Silvan Starkermann (SUI)
Bronze – Arseny Sevastyanov (FIN), Kristian Mrva (SVK)
Pool action returns tomorrow as the 9-ball tournaments for men, women, wheelchair users, and Under 23s commence.
This year sees a new streaming platform for the Predator European Championship events. Tables 1 and 2 will be streamed throughout on YouTube via the Pro Billiard TV channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@ProBilliardTV
In addition, competing players are permitted to stream their own matches on outside tables to their public social media accounts.
For all results, live scoring, and the draw, visit:
www.epbf.com/tournaments/european-championships/
EPBF Sponsors
- Predator Group
- Iwan Simonis Billiard Cloth
- Aramith Billiard Balls
- Longoni Cues
- Kamui Brand
From Official press release