Fond memories will be rekindled in Telford this weekend, as the 8th annual Paul Medati Trophy takes place at the Park Inn by Radisson hotel.
Many players of cue sports across the country, not least those who play 9-ball, will share memories of Paul’s time as a player. His days as both a snooker professional, as well as being a 9-ball player in later life, were always spent with an infectious smile on his face and he was one of the friendliest and most cheerful players during his short time on the GB 9 Ball Tour. Paul played in the tour’s inaugural season back in 2008 before sadly losing his battle with lung cancer later that year. The competition has been held in his honour from 2009 to the present day, with the trophy being amongst the most coveted in the GB9 calendar.
Previous winners of the competition read like a who’s who of some of the finest cuesport talent in the country. Karl Boyes, Mark Gray and Craig Osborne are all major forces in the sport in Great Britain, whilst Chris Melling is currently competing on the World Snooker main tour. Mick Hill, 2013 champion, is the reigning WEPF World Eightball champion and recently came within one frame of winning the Chinese 8-Ball world title. As previously announced current IPA World Champion Gareth Hibbott will be making his GB9 debut this weekend and of course many more of the finest amateur and professional players from across the continent will be eagerly hoping they can add their name to that roll of honour and take away the silverware from Telford.
Current IPA World Champion – Gareth Hibbott / Photo ©Sean Trivass
Play at this year’s Paul Medati Trophy will begin on the afternoon of Friday 8th April, with play right through to the early evening of Sunday 10th April. Live streaming and live scoring through GB9Live will be available through competition, and access to spectators is free to all. We hope you can share in the tournament, both near and far, as we once again pick our cues up in honour of Paul Medati, a much missed player and friend.
We still have a few spaces available in this event but entry closes at midnight on Tuesday 5th April so don’t delay and enter now. Further information can be found on the event details page of our website.
Play begins as ever on the afternoon of Friday with the opening rounds of the Paul Medati Trophy, with play right through the weekend up until the early evening of Sunday 10th April. Entry to spectators is free of charge as ever and, with so many big names taking part in competition this year, now is the perfect opportunity to come and watch some of the stars of our sport in action. This is a season not too be missed, so even if you can’t be at the venue you can once again keep up to date with GB9’s innovative scoring system GB9-Live, alongside the ever popular Live-Stream of the TV table to fans across the world. We look forward to seeing you all in Telford ready for another season of world class pool.
In 2016 GB9 is proudly sponsored by Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billiard Balls, McDermott Cue, Kamui Tips, Rasson Billiards and Carlson Rezidor Hotels making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues.
Article ©Martyn Royce
Photo ©Sean Trivass