Japan’s Tomokazu HARIMOTO is now the youngest ever player to qualify for the main draw of an ITTF World Tour event at the age of 12 years, 3 months and 26 days, after topping his group at the GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour Polish Open qualifications.
HARIMOTO accomplished the achievement after beating Croatia’s TAN Ruiwu 4-3 (8-11, 16-14, 11-9, 11-9, 3-11, 13-15, 11-9) in an intense 7-game thriller in the qualifications stage. Earlier yesterday, he beat Czech Republic’s Tomas POLANSKY 4-0.
“I’m happy that I’m the youngest to ever make it to the main draw,” shared an elated Japanese. “I started playing table tennis when I was only 2 years old, because of my parents. They were table tennis players too, and they inspired me to play. When I was a little boy, I would sit on a chair and try to play table tennis, now, I practise 9 hours every day!”
“Now I will join my idol FAN Zhendong in the main draw, and I hope I can win as many matches as I can here in Warsaw! Regardless it’s junior or senior level, I want to play my highest level.”
Tomokazu Harimoto becomes youngest ever qualifier for main draw of an ITTF World Tour event
“Even though I won against TAN Ruiwu, and finished first in my group here, my block is still not perfect, and it’s one area that I will have to improve on.”
Qualified for the men’s singles main draw, HARIMOTO will now face 2015 World Champion, MA Long in the Round of 32 tomorrow. Main draw for the Polish Open will begin from 23 Oct – 25 Oct, with the final battle for gold on Sunday, 25 October.
FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 – Leagues Update 3
All the qualifiers for the Longines FEI World Cup™ 2014/2015 Final have now concluded, following the Central European League Final in Warsaw, Poland 12 days ago and the last legs of the North America East and West Coast Leagues at Ocala, Florida and Thermal, California.
The excitement is building by the day, with the deadline for receipt of nominated entries coming up tomorrow, 27 March, and definite entries due to be confirmed by 6 April, just a week before the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final begins at the Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas, USA, the 37th running of arguably the sport’s most sought-after individual title.
Ireland’s Bertram Allen clinched his second victory in the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Western European League at Bordeaux, France riding Romanov. (FEI/Pierre Costabadie)
Central European League
Latvia’s Kristaps Neretnieks emerged as Central European champion at the exciting Final in Warsaw where 17 riders from eight countries – Belarus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Turkey – battled it out for the honours.
The Central European League is sub-divided into two regions due to the vast land-base over which it takes place, and Turkey’s Derin Demirsoy was the sole representative from the Southern Sub-League at the Final staged in Poland’s capital city.
There were 11 points-gaining events in the Northern Sub-League and four in the Southern Sub-League, and riders arrived at the Central European League Final carrying their best five results to which points earned from three further competitions would also be added.
Neretnieks didn’t get off to a great start when collecting 12 penalty seconds in the opening Table C Speed class with Casscare which left him well down the line. It was the host nation’s Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski who scored best here when runner-up with Inferno ahead of Turkey’s Demirsoy riding Harry K. The win went to Germany’s Marcel Braig, but he was not in contention for Central European League points.
And in the Table A class that followed, it was Estonia’s Gunnar Klettenberg who seized the maximum 20 points available when second with Lance S, while Aleksandr Lis from Belarus was next best in fifth place with Que Pasa. A single error with Caramsin pinned Neretnieks back into 11th position here, but in the Grand Prix his 10-year-old bay Hannoverian stallion secured victory in style.
Latvia’s Kristaps Neretnieks won the FEI World Cup™ Jumping Central European League Final 2015 at Warsaw, Poland. (FEI/Karol Rzeczycki)
All to play for
There was a massive 40 points up for grabs this time out, so it was all to play for. Producing one of just four double-clear rounds from the starting field of 40 horse-and-rider combinations, the 25-year-old Latvian left the rest floundering in his wake as he galloped to victory in the quickest time of 38.48 seconds. Poland’s Msciwoj Kiecon (Urbane) and Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski (Crazy Quick) slotted into third and fourth places, but it was his seventh-place finish with Rocketman that secured runner-up spot on the series table for Russia’s Vladimir Beletskiy.
Latvia’s Andis Varna finished third on the final leaderboard ahead of Ales Opatrny from the Czech Republic in fourth while Skrzyczynski, fellow-Pole Michal Kazmierczak and Turkey’s Demirsoy filled fifth, sixth and seventh spots.
Neretnieks, Beletskiy and Varna are already on the list of nominated entries for the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Final in Las Vegas. Neretnieks previously competed at the 2013 Finals in Gothenburg, Sweden and at last year’s Longines Final in Lyon, France. Riding Conte Bellini, he also competed at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy, France.
North American Leagues
Todd Minikus won the FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 North America East Coast League, while fellow-American and 2012 FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion Rich Fellers topped the West Coast League.
The East Coast League embraced results from 13 events staged across the USA and Canada with the opportunity to gain crossover points from the West Coast and Western European League series. A total of 114 athletes participated, with 80 collecting points and each rider counted their best five results to decide the eventual winner.
It’s going to be a star-studded East Coast line-up at Las Vegas, with Minikus joined by Beijing Olympic team gold medallist Laura Kraut and 2013 FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion Beezie Madden along with Jack Towell, Kirsten Coe and McLain Ward.
Minikus began his march to the top of the leaderboard by taking maximum points at the opening leg in Bromont, Canada last July, and again at the sixth leg in Harrisburg, USA in October. He picked up more points in Washington, and although he missed out at Lexington in Kentucky a few weeks later, he brought his tally of points to 81 when runner-up behind McLain Ward at the qualifier in Toronto, Canada in November. He then sat back and left it to the rest to catch up with him.
Kraut came with a late run, helped by a double of wins in Wellington, Florida in November and again earlier this month, while Madden also scored a double, topping the leg at Lexington and finally securing her spot when second to Ireland’s Cian O’Connor in the Grand Prix at Live Oaks Plantation in Ocala, Florida last weekend. As the Irishman was not in contention for North American East Coast League points, Madden took the maximum 20 to leave her on a final total of 76, just one behind Kraut.
Towell completed with 71 points on the board while Coe collected 66 and Ward 61 to make the cut. Also finishing on 61 points was Leslie Burr Howard who, at the age of 29, became the sixth American to be crowned FEI World Cup™ Jumping champion at the Final in Gothenburg, Sweden back in 1986. She won’t compete at this year’s Final however, so her place goes to the next rider on the North America East Coast League table, 21-year-old Katie Dinan.
East Coast champion, Minikus, has enjoyed a great run of form with his talented 12-year-old Oldenburg mare, Quality Girl.
West Coast
There were nine chances to qualify from the North America West Coast series, with the opportunity to also gain crossover points from the East Coast and Western European Leagues. Rich Fellers, the man who brought the FEI World Cup™ Jumping title back to the USA for the first time in 25 years when coming out on top at the 2012 Final, won through ahead of Susan Artes who also finished with 65 points but who had to settle for runner-up spot due to Fellers’ higher placings. Just three qualify from this region, and Karl Cook has earned the third qualifying spot.
A total of 75 athletes competed, with 47 earning points and, again, the five best results decided the league title. Events took place across Canada and the USA, and Fellers kick-started his campaign at Langley in Canada where he collected 13 points before claiming the maximum 20 at the fourth leg in Rancho Murieta in California last October. He maintained his momentum with 17 more to add at the next leg in Del Mar, California, but it was his trip to the last qualifier at Live Oak Plantation in Florida last weekend that finally and firmly booked his ticket to Las Vegas.
Artes was thoroughly consistent throughout her seven outings, missing out on points just once at the seventh leg in Las Vegas, so she will be hoping that her return visit to the entertainment capital of the world will be more productive in just over two weeks’ time. She has a legion of fans who follow her every move, partly due to her relatively unusual path to the top of her sport. Originally a hunter/jumper rider on the US circuit, the 50-year-old from Burbank in California has honed a tremendous partnership with the 11-year-old Dutch-bred gelding Zamiro which she has had since he was five. Together they collected all their points at Californian venues including Del Mar, Rancho Murieta and Thermal. Artes previously qualified for the FEI World Cup™ Final in 2007 but didn’t compete. This time around she has every intention of giving it her best shot.
Karl Cook was only 23 years old when competing at the 2013 Final at Gothenburg. He lined out at seven events in the North American West Coast League this season, and his third-place finish was boosted by maximum points at round six in Thermal last October, and 17 points at the following leg in Las Vegas.
Fellers and the 19-year-old stallion Flexible took the sport by storm when winning the coveted trophy at ‘s-Hertogenbosch in The Netherlands three years ago. This horse has experienced so many come-backs from illness and injury during his career that he has long been a legend, and together with his 55-year-old rider he will have huge support when the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping 2014/2015 Final gets underway in Las Vegas on 15 April.
A press conference was held at the National Stadium in Warsaw on Monday to present the state of preparations for the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship Poland 2014, which will take place from August 30 to September 21.
The Polish Volleyball Federation was represented by its President Miroslaw Przedpelski and Vice-President Artur Popko. Polsat TV Sports Director Marian Kmita and Lukasz Sekula – board member of PL2012+, which manages the National Stadium, were also present on the organisers’ side. They were joined by Deputy Director of the Professional Sports Department Pawel Slominski, who spoke for the Polish Ministry of Sport and Tourism.
Polish Volleyball Federation Mirosław Przedpełski welcomed the press to the National Stadium, which will also host the Opening Ceremony and Match of the Men’s World Championship. Speaking about preparations for the tournament.
Mr Przedpelski said: “Everything is going according to schedule and without any obstacles. Let me repeat what I often say – that Poland was chosen by the FIVB to organise this World Championship first and foremost because of its position as a centre of world volleyball. There is no other place like this. We have everything: the fans, the atmosphere and the organisation. We need to show the world that there is no better place to play volleyball than Poland.”
Mr Przedpelski added that: “Everybody in our federation is focusing on preparations for the tournament. The Opening Ceremony is a great challenge but its organisation is well under control. This World Championship is a unique chance to boost volleyball’s popularity all around the world. New technologies will be introduced at this tournament and I’m sure that Polsat TV will do a great job in covering it all. I’m very glad that the whole world will see this.”
Polish Volleyball Federation Vice-President Artur Popko said: “First of all, I’d like to assure you that our preparations are drawing to an end. We are thinking of the Opening Match at the National Stadium and working on it as a separate event. Over three thousand people will be working at the stadium during the Opening Ceremony. The most difficult and nervous moment was the opening of ticket sales but our fans didn’t let us down and the tickets for the National Stadium disappeared in 100 minutes. Tickets for the other arenas are also selling well. The teams will be playing in a total of seven venues. The competition branding has been set up at the host cities and an one can feel an atmosphere of expectation at the venues. The branding of the venues is part of a new initiative by the FIVB. It‘s very attractive and well suited for such a prestigious event – not to mention that it matches our national colours well.”
From right to left: Marian Kmita, Lukasz Sekula, Miroslaw Przedpelski, Artur Popko, Pawel Slominski and Janusz Uznanski (PVF spokesman) with the 1974 and 2014 World Championship Trophies
Mr Popko also commented on the competition’s legacy: “What remains after the World Championship is also important for us. All kinds of activities and events promoting volleyball among children and youth have been going on in the host cities and those will surely be continued. Thanks to the Ministry of Sport we will also have the Mini World Championship. The Trophy Tour made it possible for the fans to see the new trophy with their own eyes – something that has never been done before. The Polish Volleyball Federation is ready for the World Championship. All formalities are either already completed or being finalized right now.”
Pawel Slominski, who spoke on behalf of the Polish Ministry of Sport and Tourism, said: “This is the second event of such scale and importance in the history of Polish sport. The Ministry of Sport supports volleyball in Poland. We subsidise the training of the national teams – not only seniors but also other age groups and beach volleyball – and let’s not forget the volleyball schools. In 2014, the Ministry donated PLN 31.5 million to the PVF – the highest subsidy among sports federations in Poland. I’m saying this with a sense of satisfaction, because cooperation with the Polish Volleyball Federation has been perfect. The schooling system created by the PVF seems ideal. We have also subsidised the renovation of competition halls, like Bydgoszcz’s Luczniczka. Financial support for the organisation of the World Championship in Poland has also been given by the Ministry. And as a fan, I’m counting on our national team to get a hold of a medal.”
Lukasz Sekula described Polsat TV’s role in the competition: “In 25 days, more than 62 thousand spectators will have a chance to take part in the Opening Match of the World Championship. The National Stadium is proud to host the biggest sports event in this country – two years after Euro 2012. For us it is most important to provide the highest quality in organising the event and we are cooperating with the PVF to achieve this.”
Polsat TV Sports Director Marian Kmita commented that: “This is the biggest TV production in the sports history of Polsat TV. It’s our pride. For 15 years, we did what we could to make volleyball a part of our everyday life. We invested not only money but also a lot of heart. Surely, this event would not be held in Poland without Polsat TV.”
The demand for the World Championship from fans has surpassed initial estimations and half a million tickets have been sold. The TV coverage of the opening match will involve three production trucks, 30 cameras (including Spidercam and Super Slow Mo cameras) and 300 crew members. There will be daily news coverage of the competition on all Polsat TV channels and four special PPV channels will make it possible to show all of the matches live, with all Polsat and Polkomtel clients getting these channels at no additional cost.
Mr Kmita concluded that: “We hope that this will lead to integration among fans and in the special Fan Zones. I hope that this event well leave us proud and with a medal. It will be a fantastic experience for everyone.”
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