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EPBF European Championships 2011
8-Ball, 9-Ball, 10-Ball and 14.1 for Men, Women and Wheelchair
Venue Stahlpalast
Magdeburger Landstra�e 228
14770 Brandenburg
Germany
www.stahlpalast-brandenburg.de
www.epbf.com
www.epconline.eu - PPV LiveStream (20 tables/20 streams)

23 March 2011 - 3 April 2011

All winners in the straight pool division (left to right):
Petroni, Kjoersvik, Kaplan, Ouschan, Pruchay, Majirina, Makkonen and Lopez.
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THE 2011 EUROPEAN POOL CHAMPIONSHIPS
14-1 STRAIGHT POOL
MEN
	1st	Thomas Kaplan	POLAND
	2nd	Fabio Petroni	ITALY
	3rd	Petri Makkonen	FINLAND
	3rd	Roman Pruchay	RUSSIA

THE 2011 EUROPEAN POOL CHAMPIONSHIPS
14-1 STRAIGHT POOL
WOMEN
	1st	Jasmin Ouschan	AUSTRIA
	2nd	Line Kjoersvik	NORWAY
	3rd	Anna Majirina	RUSSIA
	3rd	Silvia Lopez	SPAIN

Straight Pool Champions Crowned - Ouschan and Kaplan take the first merits

The first two titles of the 2011 Dynamic European Championships have been awarded. Jasmin Ouschan (AUT) and Tomasz Kaplan (POL) are 2011 EPBF European Straight Pool Champions.

The match between Kaplan and Fabio Petroni started not good for the young Polish player. He opened the match with a safety shot that was not too good. Petroni made 13 balls but he failed to get position on the last two balls. He missed a shot and brought Kaplan back to the table. Kaplan also missed and Petroni played 2 more balls. �I was very nervous�, the Italian player admitted after the final, �I was very focussed but my nervousness forced errors on me. My opponent was in dead stroke and I had no chance in this match�, said Petroni. Then Kaplan got back to the table and ran 56 and 66 balls. Leading 122:18, he was almost sure to win the match. Petroni got another chance to play a combination shot after Kaplan has played a safety. But Petroni missed and left te balls open for Kaplan to become the first Polish player ever to win a title in the Men�s or Women�s division.

�I am so happy, I cannot even find the right words to say�, said an emotional Kaplan after the finals. �This victory means a lot for me and my country.�

"Read More..." for the details.

In the women�s division, Jasmin Ouschan defended her title as European straight pool Champion. She defeated Norway�s Line Kjoersvik with 75:31. Mission accomplished for Jasmin. �I am always happy when I win a title. It is much harder to defend a title than to win it once and then let go�, stated Ouschan after the match. Kjoersvik said: �Of course, I do not like to lose. But Jasmin has played so strong that I think in the end the better player won. I will now focus on the other disciplines� the ambitious player from Scandinavia says.

Play will continue with 8-ball matches on Sunday morning 09:00 local time.

Anna Majirina - Russia.
Kjoersvik crushed by Majirina - Russian lady wins by 6:3

The next surprise can be reported from the women�s division. Line Kjoersvik (NOR), who is playing the straight pool final tonight, got crushed by Anna Majirina (RUS) with 6:3. Kjoersvik, who commutes regularly between Europe and USA, can definitely be regarded as one of Europe�s top female players. However, in this match she did not have the better end on her side. Though the gap between the players in the match was not really wide, Majirina managed to get a 3:1 lead over Kjoersvik. From then on, she never let the Norwegian overtake her and safely shipped the victory into her account.

She will now play Katarzyna Wesolowska from Poland in the next match which will be the winner�s qualification round. Kjoersvik will go to the loser�s side where she needs three more wins in order to qualify for the single elimination stage.
The next round will feature the straight pool finals of the Men�s and the Women�s division.

Andreas Georgiou - Cyprus.
Surprise as Chamat and Chinahov sent to the loser�s side in 8 ball

Probably the biggest surprise in the 8-ball competition so far. Ruslan Chinahov (RUS), who has 5 Gold medals in Junior European Championships, a bronze and a silver medal in Men�s European Championships and has won the 2009 9-ball World Championships for juniors, fell to the sharp blade of underdog Andreas Georgiou from Cyprus with 6:8. Georgiou, who had his first appearance in last year�s EC, has not won any titles or medals yet. Still, he was a tough challenge for Chinahov. The player from Cyprus was leading with 5:1 and 6:2 in the set when Chinahov got started. He drew the match at 6:6 when Georgiou managed to win two more games and caused the sensation.

Rachelle Meyer - Luxembourg.
Another unexpectedly clear result was Artem Koshovyi�s (UKR) 8:2 victory over �Napoleon� Marcus Chamat from Sweden. Chamat made an avoidable mistake when the score was 5:2 in favour of the young Ukrainian. Koshovyi made it 6:2. Then, Chamat scratched on the break and Koshovyi ran out this and then next game to win the match 8:2.

Tonight�s straight pool finalist Tomasz Kaplan (POL) received a 5:8 defeat against �The machine� Oliver Ortmann (GER).
In the women�s division, Rachelle Meyer (LUX) got slightly overpowered by Sara Rocha (POR) with 5:6. The match was always as tight as possible. No player was able to gain a two-game advantage at any time. In the end, it was Rocha to leave the arena as the winner, sending Meyer to the �bad� side of the bracket.

Tankred Volkmer - Germany.
In the wheelchair division, the all-German clash between Tankred Volkmer and Manfred Gattinger ended 5:4 in Volkmer�s favour after he has been trailing 4:1.

Milos Verkic - Serbia.
Albin Ouschan and Niels Feijen just make it

With only the final of the straight pool competition left for tonight at 21:15, the Saturday started with 8-ball. 09:00 in the morning, the men�s 8-ball division started on 24 tables. In the next round, the women also joined in and claimed 12 of the tables for their use. The next round then will also feature the start of the wheelchair 8-ball competition here at the Dynamic European Championships in Brandenburg a.d. Havel, Germany.

The men�s match between Albin Ouschan (AUT) and Mats Schjetne (NOR) turned out to be a real thriller. Schjetne quickly took a 5:1 lead in a race to 8. Things did not look good for Ouschan, Jasmin�s younger brother. Bute he managed to make his way back into the match and forced a hill-hill decision, when the score was 7:7. In the end, he turned out to have the better nerves and outscored his opponent form Norway with 8:7.

With the same result, �Terminator� Niels Feijen (NED) defeated Milos Verkic (SRB) surprisingly close. Verkic managed to get a 3:1 lead over the Dutch player, when Niels struggled to get back and took a 6:3 lead himself, winning 5 games in a row. After that, it was Verkic again to win another two games which took him to the hill leading 7:6. But Feijen would not be Feijen if he would not know how to handle pressure. He concentrated and focussed on his game and sent Verkic with 8:7 to the loser�s bracket.

2011 EPBF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 2

Tomasz Kaplan from Poland (pictured) wins over Petri Makkonen.
First Polish player ever to get a shot at the title

125:102 was the final score in favour of the young Polish player. �This is a great achievement; not only for me but also for my country�, Kaplan says very happy. �If I win tomorrow, I could make history.� For sure, many of his fellow countrymen will be watching Kaplan playing the final at 21:15 local time. �I do not care who I play. I know that when I play my best game, I can overcome everybody�, says Kaplan full of self-confidence. He had a strong opponent in Petri Makkonen. Kaplan took a 54:15 lead when Makkonen slammed in 89 balls to rush towards the finish line. But then a safety battle evolved where Kaplan turned out to be the first player to get a shot. He ran 63 balls and defeated Makkonen with his own weapons.
His opponent will be Fabio Petroni (ITA). He defeated Roman Pruchay in the other semi-final match with 125:73. When asked about his game, Fabio answered: �I am very happy to have reached the final. The other players were all much younger than me. Their game is different. They do not think so much. Once I am in stroke, I can also achieve that, but their stroke is better in the beginning.

Final Men:
Tomasz Kaplan (POL) v Fabio Petroni (ITA)

Final Women:
Jasmin Ouschan (AUT) v Line Kjoersvik (NOR)

Fabio Petroni - Italy.
Ortmann and Tege lose in the quarter finals

Following the Dutch players, the German team lost their last hopes with Ortmann (106:125 against Makkonen) and Tege (43:125 against Petroni). That means that three out of four semi-finalists are young guns with Petroni being the veteran among the quartet.

Line Kjoersvik - Norway.
Last Dutch hopes elimininated by local heroes Tege and Kaplan

Sascha Tege struck again. After eliminating van den Berg in the previous round, he now sent Niels Feijen form The Netherlands to his hotel room. He won the match with 125:95. In the same round, Polish Tomasz Kaplan clearly crushed Huidji See with 125:15.

In a very gritty encounter, Italy�s Fabio Petroni outscored Serbia�s Sandor Tot with a margin and won 125:122. In a tight match, it was Tot to reach 122 points first while Petroni was on 82. He then made a mistake on the feature match table #24 and Petroni showed no mercy, running out the match with a series of 43 balls.

In the women�s division, Line Kjoersvik (NOR) managed to defeat Gerda Hofstaetter with 75:62. Kjoersvik will meet Silvia Lopez from Spain in the semi-final.

Due to many late matches today, the organizer decided to delay the final matches of the straight pool to Saturday, March 26th, at 21:15. Otherwise, the finals would have to be played tonight and that would definitely not be in the best interest of players and/or spectators.

Sascha Tege - Germany.
Ralf Souquet Out - Young Russian, Roman Pruchay beats �Kaiser� at 14.1

In another �clash of the generations�, again the youth overpowered the veteran. Roman Pruchay (RUS), 20 years old, defeated Ralf Souquet (GER), 42, with an unbelievable score of 125:2! The match started out with a lot of safety play. The first chance to take the initiative at a score of -2:-2 had Souquet. �I had two possible shots, but they were both tough. I decided to take my chance and went for one of them, but I missed.

Pruchay then made 109 balls.� �My opponent played very well and he missed his position after 109 balls. That was unnecessary.� �I was sitting for a long time and I did not feel well when I came back to the table. So I did not get position on the break shot and came in straight on the object ball. I tried to call a ball from the whole rack but I missed. Then he ran out.� When being asked about his victory against �the legend� Ralf Souquet,

Pruchay states: �I did not believe I would get a chance when I saw that I drew Ralf Souquet. He is one of the toughest opponents one could get in this game�, the Russian youngster mentions with a lot of respect for his opponent. �I will see how far I can go in this event. Now after I have beaten Souquet, everything is possible!�

Another surprise in the Men‟s division was the victory of local hero Sascha Tege (GER) over Dutch top player Nick van den Berg with 125:53. In the next round, Tege will have to face another heavyweight: van den Berg‟s teammate Niels �The Terminator� Feijen.

Tamara Rademakers - Netherlands.
In the women‟s division, the final 16 players have been cut into half and 8 players are left for the quarterfinal matches. Among them is Gerda Hofstaetter. Born in Austria, she moved to the US more than 15 years ago in order to become part of the Women‟s Professional Tour WPBA.

A role model for many European female players, Gerda had to play against Tamara Rademakers from The Netherlands. �I was happy when I saw the draw against Gerda though I knew it would not be easy for me. I lost my first match against Jasmin Ouschan and now I had another top player in front of me�, the likeable Dutch lady declares. �I had my chances�, she said after the match that went in favour of Hofstaetter with 75:68. Rademakers was leading in the beginning when Hofstaetter switched into full power mode. The Austrian gained a 70:56 lead, but Tamara did not give up. She fought back until she achieved a situation where both players were tied at 69:69. A safety battle followed and Tamara got the first shot. She had a combination shot in front of her.

�I know it was a "do or die" thing for me. If I make that combo, I can run the remaining six balls and win the match�. She missed the combo and opened the way for Gerda to enter the quarterfinals, where she will meet Line Kjoersvik from Norway.

France's Stephan Cohen and Germany's Manuel Ederer in action today.
Ederer (GERMANY) defeats Cohen (FRANCE) after a marvelous comeback

Today�s matches bring the feeling of all or nothing to the arena. The tournament starts with two rounds in the loser�s bracket where the defeated players will drop out of the straight pool championship.

One very dramatic matchup happened between Stephan Cohen from France and Germany�s Manuel Ederer. Both players are well known to be good straight pool players, both players have lost one match so far and both players want to make it to the final 32.

They represent different generations of European Pool-Billiard. Cohen turns 40 years of age this year while Ederer becomes 18 in May. The match could be called �experience v youth�. And so it starts. Cohen takes an amazingly high lead and everything looks in his favour. When the score was 113 to 39 in favour of the French, no one really believes in Ederer to come back anymore. But he does. Cohen allows him to take the table. He takes all the confidence he has and pockets ball after ball, rack after rack. He makes no more mistakes and stands the heat of table 22 in the final arena. He runs 86 balls and eliminates Cohen out of the straight pool event, securing himself a spot in the best 32 player�s single elimination.

2011 EPBF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 1

The Netherland's Huidji See focuses on his next shot.
Huidji See beats Bruno Muratore in Winner's Qualification Round

Huidji See (NED) defeated top player Bruno Muratore (ITA) in only 1 hour 15 minutes by 125:29. �I really felt comfortable during the match�, See stated, �that makes me strong.� �I also enjoy the tables and the tight pockets they have. With normal pockets, many players can run 100 balls or more which means that every mistake could be brutally punished. With these championship tight pockets, the danger of running into such a high run is far less�. �Additionally, Bruno was really unlucky during the match while the balls were rolling in my favour.�

Huidji See, who became 3rd in last year�s straight pool European Championship, can be couned to the best 14/1 players in Europe. �I think that probably the Dutch or German players are most favoured to win the title this year�. Muratore will get another chance in the loser�s bracket tomorrow.

Finland�s youngster Petri Makkonen again caught the attention when he defeated Russian superstar and multiple World Junior Champion Ruslan Chinahov with 125:79. Chinahov will get one last chance in the loser�s bracket and try to make it to the single elimination stage of the straight pool division.
That concludes day one of the Dynamic European Championships 2011. All results may be viewed on our event website.

Germany's Simone Kuenzl
Former European 9-Ball Champion Stephan Cohen sent to Loser's Side

Probably the most unexpected result so far is the victory of Petri Makkonen (FINLAND) over Stephan Cohen (FRANCE) with a 125:39 final score. It took eight innings before the young Finnish player pocketed the final ball against his veteran opponent. Cohen was clearly favourite in that match and now has to try and make his way through the loser�s side.

Local hero and one of Germany�s hopes Sascha Tege was defeated in the same round by Cohen�s fellow countryman Vincent Facquet. The Frenchman demonstrated his strong will to make it to the next round and did not leave too many chances for his German opponent in a match that was characterized by tactical play.

Unexpected in the women�s division was the loss of Louise Furberg (SWE) against young Kim Witzel (GER). Furberg, who is long time known as one of Europe�s top female straight pool players, could not play to her abilities today and had to unscrew her cue stick in the end, losing 55:75 to the young German.

Another German young gun in this tournament is Simone Kuenzl. She won her first appearance in the women�s division against Victoria Nagorna (UKR) with a 75:58 score. �I am pretty excited to participate in the women�s division� says the 2-time European Champion in the junior�s division. �I was lucky to win today since my opponent did not take her chances against me.� �It is a tough step from the junior�s to the women�s division�, Kuenzl says. Her role model in pool is Jasmin Ouschan. She is looking forward to playing against her, but hopefully not necessary in the single elimination stages. �I do not aim for a certain place in the tournament. I hope I can play up to my abilities and perform the best I can�.

Spain's David Alcaide victorious over Malvin Bjelland fom Norway
Defending Champion Through to Next Round

The first matches of the straight pool discipline are played. The defending champion, David Alcaide from Spain drew first blood against his Norwegian opponent Malvin Bjelland. �I really like the set up and the atmosphere that we are playing in here� says Alcaide. �I am not too happy with my performance but I am also not disappointed. I can play a bit better but my opponent did not make use of his chances.� When asked about his practice habits, Alcaide replies with a smile: �I never practice straight pool. I only play it at the EC. My favourite game is 8-ball though. That is what I play in Spain during the year. On the Euro-Tour I play 9-ball and 10-ball, of course�. It will be interesting to follow whether Alcaide will be able to defend his title this year, knowing that many tough players are hungry for the title.

Head Mayor of City of Brandenburg, Dr. Dietlind Tiemann and Secretary of State Mr. Burkhard Jungkamp perform the opening breaks.
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European Championships Officially Opened

The European Championships 2011 have been officially opened today. Under the eyes of approximately 200 spectators and players from all over Europe, the president of the EPBF, Mr. Gre Leenders, gave the starting signal and the Head Mayor of the City of Brandenburg, Mrs. Dietlind Tiemann as well as the Secretary of State for Education, Youth and Sports, Mr. Burkhard Jungkamp, executed the first opening breaks for the event.

The opening ceremony was held in the final table of the arena. In the beginning, all nations were announced and their lags were walked in by two representative players from that nation. When all 33 nations were called in, the arena was packed with flags and representing athletes.

Before the official part began, a minute of silence for the victims of the catastrophe in Japan was held.

After that, some dignitaries were introduced and the player of the year award was handed over to Jasmin Ouschan from Austria. A separate press release about that issue is to follow.

Some short but very warm words of welcome were expressed by Mr. Jungkamp and Mrs. Tiemann. Then Mr. Leenders thanked the sponsors and invited the two dignitaries to open the event.

In front of us there are now 10 days of thrilling pool action.

The event will be hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP).

2011 EPBF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS - DAY 0

Preparations nearly finished as players and teams arrive for accreditation

The arena with all its details is about to be finished today. Several innovations are introduced here. Probably the most obvious one is the new railing set in the TV arena which consists of 18 TV�s that display the main sponsors for the EC with live graphics.

While the organizing team is finalizing the preparations for the setup, the national contingencies are about to arrive in Brandenburg a.d. Havel. Over 200 participants from 33 nations are expected to arrive into the Axxon hotel for accreditation today. Whereas the foreign teams get their rooms, the host nation�s team has already arrived yesterday.

Two media appointments are on the German player�s agenda for today. First there will be an interview with the largest local newspaper (MAZ). After that, a national TV station (RBB) is preparing a short clip with the national German hopes for the event. The clip can be seen on TV later on. This underlines the positive media attention which the event has already had since last weekend.

The opening ceremony will begin on Thursday, March 24th, 2011, at 10:00 am local time. Before the president of the EPBF, Gre Leenders, will officially open the EC, the award for the Player of the Year 2010 will be presented. The outcome of the election is still kept secret and will be revealed during tomorrow�s ceremony.

The event will be hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP).

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