By Ted Lerner
(Beijing, China)–Joy riding a powerful wave that had been building steadily all week, the four member Chinese-Taipei pool team cruised to an emphatic 4-0 finals victory over Japan, to lay claim to the 2012 World Pool Team Championship in the Beijing suburb of Tongzhou.
Today’s performance was yet another statement from the Taipei fearsome foursome of Chang Jun Lin, Ko Pin Yi, Fu Che Wei and female player Chieh Yu Chou. They were barely touched all week, and they showed the pool world how great individual talents can come together and perform as a well oiled machine with all parts working in harmony.
For Japan, their always smiling faces never seemed to go away, but their good fortune did. The Japanese had lived on a high wire for the last two days, winning two straight sudden death shoot outs to advance in the event.
Chinese-Taipei, though, made sure the finals never even got close to an anything’s-possible shoot out. Backed by the over 400 fans inside the Tonghzhou High School gymnasium, who had obviously taken to their cross-strait cousins after both China squads had been eliminated, the Taiwanese came out guns ablazing today. In the opening match of 8-ball doubles, the duo of Chang and Ko walloped Naoyuki Oi and Yukio Akakagariyama 6-0, to give Chinese-Taipei a 1-0 lead.
Japan looked like they would make a match of it in the second of today’s six scheduled matches, this one the 8-ball singles. Japan’s Toru Kuribayashi was up 5-2 in a race to 6, but a tenacious Fu clawed his way back. Tied at 5, Kuribayashi had the break shot but he scratched on the bust out, and Fu stepped up to clear his colors for the win, and a 2-0 finals lead.
That missed opportunity signaled the beginning of the end for Japan, as Chinese-Taipei pounced like an anemic shark after fresh blood. Indeed Chieh Yu Chou took her turn in the women’s 9-ball singles against Japan’s Chihiro Kawahara and turned up the gas yet another notch for her squad, winning easily 8-2. Chieh has been a rock all week for Chinese-Taipei, playing basic, good solid pool with little fanfare. Just the kind of no-nonsense teammate required to win world titles.
The score was now 3-0 in favor of Chinese-Taipei and the Japanese, along with the fans in attendance, sensed the end was very near. The always strong Ko Pin Yi then confirmed the storyline, and the title, with a strong performance in the men’s 10 ball singles, handily defeating Akakagariyama, 7 – 4.
After collecting the cash, a beautiful vase, fresh flowers and the accolades of the fans, the players of Chinese-Taipei joked with their Japanese counterparts and exchanged congratulatory handshakes and slaps on the back. There were absolutely no hard feelings about the result. Chinese-Taipei had dominated the event all week, and they closed it out in style, all the while offering others a lesson in the ways of a team in a sport normally played alone.
“I think the reason we played so well all week is because we are all good friends,” Ko said through an interpreter afterward. “Each one of us knows exactly how the other plays on the table, how they shoot. Pool is usually a game you play alone and there’s a lot of pressure in singles. But here you have your teammates to pick you up, to give you advice and courage.”
For winning the 2012 World Pool Team Championship, Chinese Taipei collected $80,000 while Japan earned $40,000.
*The World Pool and Billiard Association(WPA) is the governing body of the sport of pocket billiards.
The 2012 World Pool Team Championship is sanctioned by the WPA, The Multi-Ball Games Administrative Center of General Administration of Sport, Chinese Billiard and Snooker Federation, Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sport, Beijing Sports Federation.
Prize Money
Winning Team: $80,000
Runner Up: $40,000
Semi-finalist: $20,000
5-8: $12,000
9-16: $7500
17-24: $4000
Finals
Chinese-Taipei 4 – 0 Japan
