3-Cushion
APELDOORN - On the age of 36, Peter Ceulemans is in the form of his life. ,,That's a great feeling'', the player from Malinois in Belgium said, after the win of his team, Medisch Centrum Breda, in the first play-off match against A1 Biljarts. The Zundert team took the away match in Apeldoorn 6-2. The return is for Wednesday, April 5th (19.00) on the calendar. The winner of the mats meets Eureka Billard for the national title, which is now in the hands of Buffalo.nl from The Hague.
Whoever he meets on his way in recent weeks, world top or not, Peter Ceulemans beats them all. Torbjörn Blomdahl, Martin Horn, Eddy Merckx... they all ran into the player on the peak of his form. Today, Saturday, Gerwin Valentijn was the victim. The Dutchman looked very strong, but couldn't challenge Ceulemans' high scores. The Malinois players had only two points after five innings on the scoreboard, but then attacked with twice 8 and a 9 in the second last inning, to a comfortable 40-34 in 15. That was enough for the victory after the 4-0 lead during the pause. Roland Forthomme lost in the bump of the leading players against Eddy Merckx 40-26 in 23 innings.
Peter Ceulemans has the feeling of floating on cloud nine already for some weeks. Why? ,,I can't explain... I work hard, take care of my two children and still do something in the housekeeping. Oh yes... I practice more often, maybe it has to do with that. I have a billiard table at home for two and a half years, but finally we have the proper lighting. And I have a new job since September 1, but for 32 hours per week.''
Don't they call that a flow in the sport, so also in three-cushion? But it's really a very special one, regarding Raymond's grandson, who made his first shots at the billiard on his fifth, in the cafe of his parents. ,,I played soccer until my 14th and then I played tennis.'' He lives with his wife and children in Mechelen, in the shadow of the football stadium and works at Telenet, also close to his home.
Would it be possible, Peter, that a player of your level, suddenly can make the step to the world top?
Peter Ceulemans: ,,Why shouldn't it be possible, if there are certain aspects that you change in your game and you feel that it's paying off. But I don't see it like that now. I remain very humble and keep working and training hard. The step from 1.500 to 1.700 or 1.800 is really, really great. And I do realize that I have to give it all, every match, to achieve a high level. But still... I keep on dreaming, every day.''
The victory that Medical Center Breda achieved in the first meeting was the result of these matches:
Barry van Beers-Henk Blauwblomme 40-36 in 24 (7/9 runs)
Thorsten Frings-Martien van der Spoel 40-34 in 25 (6/6)
Eddy Merckx-Roland Forthomme 40-26 in 23 (5/7)
Peter Ceulemans-Gerwin Valentijn 40-36 in 24 (8/9).