Balk-Line 71/2
RONCHIN - The European federation has opened the inscription for a Grand Prix tournament in balk-line 71/2 from 28 to 30 June. The tournament is organized by Billard Club du Canon d'Or in Ronchin, near Lille. The inscription is open for 36 players maximum. Frédéric Caudron is one of the three wild card players.
The inscription has been opened yesterday (Wednesday, May 1st). The first players who signed up come from the Czech Republic (including Marek Faus, the number two of the European championships in Brandenburg), Belgium, France and Spain.
Jean Pierre Guiraud, the French European sports director, will use the upcoming months to make a big promotion for the tournament. He has launched seven points to make the Grand Prix attractive and to encourage participation. The winner will receive 1600 euros, second prize is 900 and the third and fourth prize 600 euros.
1. It is the first international competition for Frédéric Caudron in balk-line 71/2 since his world title in 2000 in Albert.
2. It is the first Euro Grand Prix in the CEB history.
3. The tournament is organized with a simple and open formula (tournament with 36 players, 2.5 days), allowing all to confront the best.
4. The possibility for all to score ranking points CEB in order to qualify for the European championship in 2015,
5. Technological innovation wtth 'Kozoom Competition'; automatic link from the scorer's table directly to computer programs results,
6. The BCCO Ronchin is known and recognized for its organizations and its sense of hospitality,
7. A first test with the (fictional for this competition) limitation of the total playing time for each player for each game, thanks to a device developed by Kozoom, allowing all spectators, players and referees to have all information about the system.
The Europeans in Brandenburg showed very slow games that can be fatal for classic disciplines (up to 4 hours for a game in 200 points). Although the rule of '15 seconds' exists in CEB referees regulations, it is underutilized by the referres. A more efficient solution, evaluated in Ronchin, will therefore limit the total playing time for each player (as in chess)
There is a live broadcasting on Kozoom for those who can not join the party.
Inscriptions, rules and all informations on www.eurobillard.org