A world pool billiards champion among the youth and one of the best European players among the seniors. The brothers Yannick (18) and Quinten (21) Pongers from Veldhoven already have a well-stocked trophy cabinet due to their sport. All thanks to Pinocchio.
When the brothers were still young and saw the Disney film Pinocchio on television, they came into contact with pool billiards for the first time. Quinten: “Pinocchio was in Luilekkerland and went to a bar with a pool table. We thought that looked great. It was so beautiful how those balls flew into the pockets.”
That gave their parents an idea for Christmas Eve. A small pool table with small plastic balls was placed in the room. Quinten and Yannick practiced for hours, but their love for the sport only really developed when they played on a large table for the first time in their hometown. Yannick: “A sport you don’t see often, but we immediately liked it.”
“I stay cool and never give up.”
Both now train about 25 hours a week in Eindhoven. With the help of a handyman father and mother, a room with four pool tables has been attractively decorated. “As a pool player it is important to be at the table as much as possible. But I didn’t become good just by training a lot. I always remain cool-headed and never give up,” says Yannick.
“The world title was my only goal.”
He calls the under-19 world title last weekend in Austria the highlight of his young career. In the final he met his training buddy Mika van Berkel (17) from Eersel. The first time ever that the final was completely colored orange. “I knew a world title was possible and it was my only goal. It’s great that it finally works. And that against Mika, that makes it completely special. It wasn’t until a few hours after the win that I realized what I had done. We certainly had a little party.”
“Of course we want to beat each other.”
His brother Quinten plays for the seniors and recently finished third at a major European tournament. In the past, there was always the question at the kitchen table who was the better of the two. Yannick: “That’s a lot less common now, we support each other. But when we meet each other at tournaments without age categories, we naturally want to beat each other. Even better than from any opponent.”
If it is up to the people of Veldhoven, we will hear a lot more from them in the future. Quinten: “It is possible to become a full professional playing pool billiards. You really have to be at the top to earn a living from it. We work hard for it and train a lot. The fact that Yannick is now world champion is great for our whole family. We have been through so much together, this is unbelievable.”
