Star-studded line up revealed
WITH THE eighth running of the annual World Cup of Pool now a month away, the full line-up of players competing in the $250,000 event can be revealed. 32 pairs of players representing 31 countries will be coming to London from the 17th – 22nd September as the fabled pool and boxing venue of the York Hall plays host to one of the biggest events on the pool calendar.
15 of the world’s top 20 ranked players will be in attendance in what arguably is the event’s strongest line up yet. Among favourites for the title will be two-time World Cup winners China – represented by Li Hewen and Liu Haitao – and the highly dangerous Filipino pairing ofDennis Orcollo and Lee Vann Corteza.
Other notable duos from the Far East include the Chinese Taipei representatives, Ko Pin-yi and Chang Jung-lin, and Japan’s Naoyuki Oi and Lo Li-wen.
Mosconi Cup legend Johnny Archer will be partnered by Shane Van Boeing as the USA look to repeat the feat of Shane and Rodney Morris in Rotterdam in 2008 by winning the trophy for the second time.
English hopes come in the shape of World No.1 Darren Appleton andKarl Boyes, as well as Daryl Peach and Chris Melling. Both will be fancied to make a big impact in London.
Nick Van Den Berg and Niels Feijen will be carrying orange hopes on their shoulders, while veteran Ralf Souquet will be partnered by young gun Dominic Jentsch as Germany attempt to win for the second time in three years.
Finally, can the Finnish pair of Mika Immonen and Petri Makkonenstage a repeat of their brilliant run to the title in Manila last year?
Matchroom Sport chairman Barry Hearn said, “Looking at the teams for this year’s event, I reckon that at least half of them are in with a shout if the balls roll their way.
“However, you’d have to look at the track record of China, the sheer class of the Filipinos, the pedigree of the United States and of course the two high-quality English teams.
“As we’ve seen in the past though, there are always unfancied sides that emerge from the pack and make serious challenges for the title. Either way, the World Cup of Pool will be a feast for cue sports fans and with the York Hall playing host, this one should be the best yet!”
Each session will consist of three matches and all tickets can be obtained from Matchroom Sport’s trusted ticketing partnerhttp://www.seetickets.com/
A full list of fixtures can be found at http://www.matchroompool.com/
The Teams
Europe (18)
1. Finland – Mika Immonen & Petri Makkonen
2. England A – Darren Appleton & Karl Boyes
3. England B – Daryl Peach & Chris Melling
4. Holland – Niels Feijen & Nick Van den Berg
5. Germany – Dominic Jentsch & Ralf Souquet
6. Greece – Nick Ekonomopoulos & Alexander Kazakis
7. Poland – Radoslaw Babica & Tomasz Kaplan
8. Austria – Albin Ouschan & Jasmin Ouschan
9. Russia – Konstantin Stepanov & Ruslan Chinakhov
10. Italy – Fabio Petroni & Bruno Muratore
11. Spain – David Alcaide & Juan Carlos Exposito
12. Sweden – Andreas Gerwen & Marcus Chamat
13. Croatia – Karlo Dalmatin & Ivica Putnik
14. Belgium – Serge Das & Moritz Lauweryns
15. Hungary – Miko Balazs & Gabor Solymosi
16. Scotland – Jayson Shaw & Jonni Fulcher
17. Qualifier 1 - TBA
18. Qualifier 2 - TBA
Rest of World (4)
19. USA – Shane Van Boening & Johnny Archer
20. Canada – Alex Pagulayan & John Morra
21. Kuwait – Omar Al Shaheen & Khaled Al Mutairi
22. Australia - James Delahunty & David Rothall
Asia (10)
23. China – Le Hewen & Liu Haitao
24. Philippines – Lee Van Corteza & Dennis Orcollo
25. Taiwan – Chang Jung-lin & Ko Pin-yi
26. India – Raj Hundal & Amar Kang
27. Japan – Naoyuki Oi & Lo Li-wen
28. Korea - Ryu Sueng Woo & Ham Won Sik
29. Indonesia – Ricky Yang & Irsal Nasution
30. Malaysia – Alan Tan & Ibrahim Bin Amir
31. Singapore - Aloysius Yapp & Chan Keng Kwang
32. Hong Kong – Lee Chenman & Kong Bu Hong
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The 2013 World Cup of Pool Masters is delighted to work with our valued suppliers – Official Cloth: Iwan Simonis; Official Balls: Super Aramith; Official Cue: Predator.
