NORFOLK, VIRGINIA (VS) - Zijn prestaties zijn ongekend, zijn waarde voor het Nederlandse en internationale pool zijn boven iedere twijfel verheven, hij is simpelweg de beste poolspeler die Nederland ooit heeft gehad. En die internationale erkenning is er dit weekend gekomen!
Op vrijdagavond 3 november (bij ons in Nederland zaterdagochtend 4 november) 2023 is Niels “The Terminator” Feijen als eerste Nederlander ooit opgenomen in de Hall of Fame van de BCA, de prestigieuze “Billiard Congress of America”. De ceremonie vond plaats in de Norfolk Sheraton Waterside Hotel in Norfolk, Virginia, tegelijk met het 2023 International Open Pool toernooi.
Een buitengewone eer voor de beste poolspeler die Nederland ooit heeft gekend! In aanloop naar deze avond liet Niels zijn blijdschap al blijken via zijn officiële Facebook-kanaal: “Amazing honor, I’ve been elected into the BCA Hall Of Fame this year! Crazy feeling, not at all to be able to brag about it but more to be in the same club as my own heroes from when I grew up: Reyes / Busty / Earl / Archer / Ortmann / Souquet / Hall / Varner, etc. Those were the boys I studied growing up, so very cool to be introduced in November!”
“Want to thank my wife and kids above all for always being there! My parents, family, friends, trainers, coaches and all my loyal sponsors Longoni, Kamui, Hague 5, Prostar Tables by Leo, and FossFour.”
Hoe groot deze eer is, blijkt wel uit de grote hoeveelheid artikelen erover in de internationale media, bijvoorbeeld in Billiards Digest, AZ Billiards, Tableskills (waar het indrukwekkende palmares van Niels uitgebreid werd benoemd), en natuurlijk de website van de BCA zelf. Ook in de podcast Cue it Up ging het erover en in de Pool Player Podcast was Niels zelf te gast.
De prestaties van Niels Feijen zijn ongekend, zie ook zijn Wikipedia-pagina’s in het Engels en het Nederlands. Een korte opsomming: wereldkampioen 9-ball (2014), wereldkampioen straight pool (2008), Europees kampioen 9-ball (2013, 2014, 2022), Europees kampioen 8-ball (2015), Europees kampioen straight pool (2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2014, 2017, 2018), winnaar World Pool Masters (2013, 2018), verliezend finalist WK 8-ball (2010 en 2011), derde plaats WK 10-ball (2008). 14 maal deelnemer aan de Mosconi Cup, viermaal MVP bij de Mosconi Cup (in een periode van slechts vijf jaar). Plus dan nog een hele trits aan nationale titels! De lijst is bijna oneindig.
En unaniem wordt als reden gegeven voor deze prestaties: de geweldige mentale kracht van Niels. Het spelen onder lastige omstandigheden, terugkomen uit achterstand, nooit opgeven, het volledig kunnen afsluiten voor storende factoren, het beste spel bewaren voor de belangrijkste momenten: het zijn de redenen waarom Niels zo lang op zo hoog niveau heeft kunnen presteren en het zijn ook de zaken waar hij momenteel trainingen over geeft op zijn YouTube instructiekanaal.
De KNBB en KNBB Sectie Pool feliciteren de geweldige ambassadeur voor het Nederlandse en internationale poolbiljart Niels “The Terminator” Feijen van harte met deze ongekende eer.
In 2009 werd Niels al onderscheiden met het erelidmaatschap van de Koninklijke Nederlandse Biljartbond (KNBB). De destijds 32-jarige profspeler uit Den Haag was de eerste poolbiljarter die deze eer ten deel viel. Bondsvoorzitter Leon Vervoort reikte de onderscheiding uit in Weert, waar Feijen deelnam aan de Eurotour Netherlands Open.
Alle artikelen over Niels Feijen die in de loop der jaren zijn verschenen op de KNBB website vindt u hier.
Persbericht BCA:
NIELS "THE TERMINATOR" FEIJEN ELECTED TO BCA HALL OF FAME
The Billiard Congress of America (BCA) Hall of Fame welcomes one of the game’s hardest working and most ferocious competitors when the Netherland’s great Niels “the Terminator” Feijen is inducted into the sport’s most prestigious club.
Feijen, 46, a two-time World Champion, was the clear choice of voters in the Greatest Players category and is the first Dutch-born player to be inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame.
Feijen will formally be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Friday, Nov. 3, at the Norfolk Sheraton Waterside Hotel in Norfolk, Va., in conjunction with the 2023 International Open pool tournament.
“Obviously, this is a huge honor,” Feijen said when informed of his election. “To be in the same club with my heroes — legends like Efren Reyes and Earl Strickland — is an amazing feeling.
“It’s something I really didn’t think about at all until about five years ago. I was still focused on trying to win tournaments. Once I was on the ballot, I know I was close a few times. You hope, but you have to tell yourself, ‘It will happen when it happens.’”
The road has been long and measured for Feijen, an avid athlete as a youth. After discovering pool in his hometown of The Hague at 16, Feijen’s pursuit of greatness was relentless, with a stint in the U.S. as a 20-year-old, playing against the stars he’d studied on so many videos. In short order, Feijen began placing in the top 10 in numerous international events. His first major breakthrough came in 2008, when he won the World Straight Pool Championship.
After finishing third in the World 10-Ball Championship that year, and runner-up twice in the World 8-Ball Championship (2010, 2011), Feijen finally captured his second world title at the World 9-Ball Championship in 2014. He won the World Pool Masters in 2013 and repeated as champion in 2018. His biggest years were 2013 and 2014, a two-year stretch in which he added back-to-back World Cup of Pool runner-up finishes, back-to-back runner-up finishes in the Derby City 10-Ball Challenge and a pair of Mosconi Cup wins and MVP honors to his Masters and World 9-Ball crowns. He won the Derby City 9-Ball title in 2007. He has appeared in 14 Mosconi Cups, winning eight times and earning MVP honors four times. He is three-time European 9-Ball Champion, seven-time European Straight Pool Champion and European 8-Ball Champion.
“I remember my father asking me years ago what I wanted to do in pool,” Feijen recalled. “I told him, ‘I want to win a world title and get into the Hall of Fame.’ Crazy that it has happened.”
Voting for the 2023 BCA Hall of Fame was conducted by the USBMA Hall of Fame Board, which consists of USBMA members, elected At-Large members and living members of the Hall of Fame. In his fifth year on the ballot, Feijen was named on 29 submitted ballots (79%). American Corey Deuel was named on 17 ballots (48%). Jeremy Jones, JoAnn Mason-Parker, Stefano Pellinga, John Schmidt, Vivian Villarreal and Charlie Williams completed the 2023 ballot. To be eligible for consideration in the Greatest Players category, a player (a) must be 40 years old by Jan. 1 of the year of their inclusion on the ballot; (b) must have a professional playing career of at least 10 years; and (c) must have recorded significant achievements in U.S.-based and international events recognized by the BCA.
About United States Billiard Media Association
Founded in 2007, the United States Billiard Media Association (USBMA) is a non-profit association dedicated to elevating the visibility and status of billiards in the media at large. The USBMA consists of professional print, radio, TV, public relations and Internet media persons who cover cue sports. One of the association’s main functions is nominating and electing players and notable figures to the Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame.
About Billiard Congress of America
Founded in 1948, the Billiard Congress of America is a non-profit trade organization dedicated to growing a united, prosperous and highly regarded billiard industry through Billiard Congress of America leadership. The Billiard Congress of America seeks to enhance the success of its members and promote the game of billiards though educational, marketing and promotional efforts, annual industry trade shows and other programs designed to encourage billiards as a lifestyle and make pool everybody’s game. For more information, visit www.bca-pool.com.
Tekst: KNBB
Uitgelichte foto's ring: Cakti Aswan
Overige foto's: BCA
Banner: BCA
Persbericht Engels: BCA