The UK team is back from the Sjoelen World Cup in Zwartemeer, Netherlands with a fantastic performance all round. All three players made it through to the knockout stages, with Bethany Burrow qualifying in the top 100 women and Tom Burrow and Constance McIntosh Smith both also making the cut.
Tom and Constance were pitted against some of the top qualifiers in their first round knockout matches, with Tom defeated by the eventual bronze medal-winner and Constance by the fourth placed finisher.
Bethany’s higher qualification ranking meant she was against the 32nd placed qualifier in her first round match and, against form, it went to the wire. Bethany took the first game, and then her opponent, Wilnanda Hardeman, won the next three. Bethany fought back by winning the next two games, including scoring a maximum 100 points in the sixth game. A drawn game followed, leaving the scores tied at 7-7. The winner would be the first to 9 points, meaning the winner of the next game would win the match – Wilnanda clinched that game by 3 points, meaning she took a 9-7 victory.
This represents a massive step forward in Sjoelen UK’s fortunes on the world stage – while we are yet to win a knockout match, it is tantalisingly within our grasp and we’re already looking forward to the next World Cup in Germany in 2028.
In the team competition, we borrowed a couple of Swedish players to make a mixed country team and had an enormous amount of fun – and we finished satisfyingly far above the bottom of the qualifying table!
We had a ball at this World Cup, and many thanks are due to the organisers at the De Brikkenmikkers Sjoelen Club and the Algemene Nederlandse Sjoelbond. Playing in such a supportive environment with generous top players who gladly pass on their tips and tricks is a real privilege!
