CERVERA – The Spanish crowd was rooting for Esteve Mata, but Frenchman Willy Gerimont defeated the Spanish balkline player in his home land. The final at the European 47/2 championship in Cervera brought the two best players face to face. Willy Gerimont triumphed in style: with 210 and 40, the Frenchman finished in two innings, while Esteve Mata could only manage 200-64. The podium was completed by Marek Faus and Xavier Gretillat.
Willy Gerimont (45) had the best final sprint in the 47/2 championship, which will be followed tomorrow, Saturday, by the European 71/2 championship. The French winner stayed ahead of two strong Spanish classic players, among others. Raul Cuenca, European champion in one cushion two days earlier, was eliminated in the quarter-finals, while Esteve Mata reached the gold medal match with his victory over Marek Faus in the semi-finals. The Spaniard started with 42, but Willy Gerimont responded with a fantastic run of 210, which he had to break off on a 1-cushion shot. Mata failed to seize his second chance and missed after 22, after which Gerimont finished with 40: 250-64 in 2, 125.00 against 32.00 average, runs 210 and 42.
Willy Gerimont won his first European title in 2022 in Montbrison in 71/2 with Patrick Niessen, Gert-Jan Veldhuizen and Olivier Carreaux on the podium. He also finished two times second, in 2023 in Antalya in 71/2 and in 2019 in Brandenburg in 47/2. The European title that Gerimont won today in Cervera was therefore the second in his career, in which he has achieved many victories in the French Masters and French national tournaments.
The champion's comments after the match: "The title gives me a very special feeling. I came to this European Championship with a lot of doubts, because I had an inconsistent season in France. I knew the level was extremely high. Especially with Raymund Swertz in my group, who is really the benchmark in balkline play. The first match against Nikos Gerassimopoulos put me in the right mindset, because I was behind at the break, but I managed to turn the situation around and, most of all, find the right mindset for the rest of the tournament. I approached every match seriously and strictly and managed to do what I can."
’’‘I feel really very happy,’ said Gerimont an hou rafter the ceremony. "This is without a doubt the discipline in which I wanted to win in my wildest dreams. It's incredible to follow in the footsteps of big names and legends like Jean Marty and so many others. I went into the final with the goal of playing well, without thinking about winning or losing. I just didn't want to regret not playing my best game."
The Spanish ovation from the fans in Cervera, first for Esteve Mata's silver, then for Willy Gerimont's gold, was the culmination of a great tournament with high averages and maximum runs. The Dutchman Raymund Swertz and the Belgian Patrick Niessen, two of the top favorites, were eliminated in the best 8 by Esteve Mata and Marek Faus. The remaining contenders for the podium places came from the quarter-finals:
Gerimont-Kahofer 250-51 in 2
Niessen-Faus 221-250 in 12
Swertz-Mata 177-250 in 3
Gretillat-Cuenca 250-213 in 4.
Willy Gerimont, Patrick Niessen, Xavier Gretillat (2x) shone with matches in 1 inning.
Patrick Niessen was the only Belgian in this game type. The specialist played an excellent tournament and was even the best in the preliminary rounds with 6 match points and 100.000 on average.
The podium left to right: Esteve Mata, Willy Gerimont, Xavier Gretillat, Marek Faus
The champion Willy Gerimont (Morgan Delame, Kozoom)
The final ranking at the European Championship 47/2:
- Willy Gerimont 12-75.00-247
- Esteve Mata 10-61.26-170
- Xavier Gretillat 8-45.54-200
- Marek Faus 6-25.03-185
- Raymund Swertz 4-62.83-186
- Raul Cuenca 4-59.58-196
- Arnim Kahofer 4-50.11-168
- Patrick Niessen 6-45.61-200
The standings after the qualifiers:
- Patrick Niessen 6-100.00-200
- Willy Gérimont 6-75.00-200
- Xavier Gretillat 6-50.00-200
- Esteve Mata 6-50.00-104
- Raymund Swertz 4-64.11-186
- Raul Cuenca 4-62.75-196
- Arnim Kahofer 4-57.14-168
- Marek Faus 4-30.42-185