by Bill Gladding, Tavistock Gazette - June 1, 2019
Justin Slater contemplates his next move on the board during his final match.
Justin Slater has set a new World Crokinole record. After tying Brian Cook with four titles last year, Justin earned his fifth championship on Saturday, June 1, 2019.
Justin is working for a statistics consulting firm in Toronto. He said he weighs the odds of taking and completing a shot against the probable outcomes. And what do you get? Justin is now a five-time winner of the World Crokinole Championship in Tavistock having previously won in 2018, 2016, 2015 and 2010. He was the youngest to win the adult singles title winning his first championship at the age of 17.
Chatting with friends and fans prior to the final match, Justin was calm and focused. He took the time to discuss strategies and have his picture taken with first-time entrants from across the ocean - Thomas Collins of St. Peter Port, Guernsey and Joert Edink of Delft, The Netherlands.
Justin has a Masters Degree in Statistics from Queen's University. In September of this year he will be attending the University of Toronto in a PHD program in mathematical statistics. And when he’s not sitting in front of a crokinole board or computer screen, one of his other hobbies is rock climbing.
This year, in the final match, Justin went up against last year’s Recreational Singles champion Darren Carr of Shelburne. Justin managed a 4-2 win after dropping the first round. Darren, who earned second place, is a member of the Shelburne Shenanigans group that attended this year’s event. They increased their numbers from 4 players last year to 10 players this year wearing unmistakeable bright green t-shirts. The group was formed out of members of the Shelburne Curling Club who enjoy crokinole after their regular weekly curling.
Roy Campbell of Elmira, who lost to Slater in the semi-finals, placed third, and Connor Reinman, of Grosse Pointe, Michigan was fourth.
The World Crokinole Championship hosted their 21st annual tournament on Saturday, June 1, 2019 with a maximum number of tables in play during the singles play in the afternoon. A total of 127 tables were set up to facilitate the sold-out crowd of players in the competitive, recreational, cues and youth categories.
Welcoming this year’s crowd was first-time emcee Joe Richards, who took over the announcing duties from retiring Ken Wettlaufer, who has been the voice of the tournament for the past 20 years. Joe is a professional camp counsellor, avid crokinole player, and so he was comfortable at the microphone, explaining the day’s proceedings and keeping the crowd entertained and educated between games. Linda Bender, registrar, was also new this year taking over from Sherrill Calder.
Once again the Beierling brothers, Ray Beierling of Dorchester and Jason Beierling of Kitchener took home the top doubles title. The Beierling’s have won 8 doubles titles now and each have won the competitive singles championship. Second place this year went to Reid and Nolan Tracey of Elmira. Jon Conrad of Milverton and Connor Reinman of Grosse Pointe, Michigan placed third while fourth place went to Fred and Justin Slater, Toronto.
The Recreational Doubles championship was won by Reuben and his son, Abijah Jongsma of Hamilton with second place to Peter Carter and Jo-Ann Carter of Teeswater, third place to Ben Wiseman and Damian Lirette of Kitchener and fourth place to Doug Patterson and Scott Patterson of Cambridge. For Youth Doubles, Nathan Workman, Dresden and Earl Watson, Branchton were the champs while second place went to Zionne Jongsma and Jahjireh Jongsma, Hamilton; third place to Nolan Bechtel, Waterloo and Eamonn Byrne, Kitchener and fourth place to Jack Jongsma and Manoah Jongsma, Hamilton.
At the Cues tables, this year’s champions were Dave Brubacher, Listowel and Dennis Brubacher, Elmira. Second place went to Josh Carrafiello and Doug Schwartzentruber, New Hamburg; third place to Lorraine Proud and Art Proud, Kitchener; and fourth place to Lorne Steckley, Milverton and Karl Steckley, Wellesley. Cue Singles champion once again was Lorraine Proud of Kitchener. Dave Brubacher, Listowel was second, Jeff Steckley, Wellesley in third; and Ezra Jantzi, Millbank in fourth place.
In other singles play, Patrick Hulme of Tillsonburg won the junior title, Nolan Bechtel of Waterloo the Intermediate title, and Abijah Jongsma of Hamilton, the Recreational Singles title. Abijah was the youngest player in the 2011 tournament at 7 years of age. The following year he placed second in the junior category, then won first in 2013 and 2014. He followed that with four consecutive titles in the intermediate category from 2015 to 2018. He will surely be a force to reckon with in the future.
INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS
Over the years the WCC has had players from all over the world … Germany, Scotland, Chile, France and so on. This year, Thomas Collins came from St. Peter Port, Guernsey (an island in the English Channel) and Joert Edink from Delft, The Netherlands.
Five-time WCC Champion Justin Slater (centre) with Thomas Collins (left) of Guernsey and Joert Edink of The Netherlands.
Thomas’s grandfather was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and moved to England about 20 years ago. Thomas remembers playing crokinole with him as a young lad of 5 years or so. About 18 months ago, Thomas signed a 5-year contract to work for a financial services insurance company in Guernsey. He enjoys travelling the world during his free time and planned a trip to Canada to visit relatives in Vancouver and Toronto before attending the World Crokinole Championship in Tavistock. He was quite pleased with his results placing 62nd in recreational doubles and 63rd in recreational singles.
Joert Edink of Delft, The Netherlands attended this year’s event for the first time with his partner, Jane Manson of Newfoundland, who he met while holidaying in Vancouver 16 years ago. An IT design and software engineer, Joert lived in Vancouver and Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, and has family in Ottawa. He said he enjoys the game of crokinole and watched a YouTube clip by Nathan Walsh that gave him the idea to come to Tavistock, compete and connect with the best players in the world. Joert placed 57th overall in competitive singles play while he and Jane were 40th in the competitive doubles category. Joert recently bought his uncle a board and is always introducing the game to his friends.
This year also brought 30 players from the US. They represented 7 states including Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio and New York. Six of the New York players are members of a wider crokinole group called the Extra Pint Crokinole Club that meets in different locations around the State of New York and concluded their season with a U.S. Open tournament in April.
TOURNAMENT RECORDS
One player, who travelled the furthest here in Canada was Jane Manson from Hay River, North West Territories. Next in distance were St. John’s and Cornerbrook, Newfoundland as well as 11 faithful crokinole players from Prince Edward Island. Locally, the city of Kitchener had 49 players registered this year.
A school bus also arrived at the arena with 18 young players from Toronto. Calling themselves the City Flickers, with matching blue t-shirts and a logo that included the CN Tower piercing a crokinole board, the group was organized with the help of former Tavistock resident Lindsey Falk.
City Flickers: Photo, left to right, front row: Joel Mason, Patrick Fear, AJ Markowski, Andrew Kampian, Sam Mason, Alex Stevenson, Michael LeSouder, Mitchell Finck; back row: Meaghan McGlade, Samantha Hamilton, Lindsey Falk, Aly Perry, Trisha Arts, Blaire Golledge, Masooma Hussain, Rebecca Kennedy, Caroline Edmonson and Elysia Mason.
On Saturday, there were 21 members of the Scone Crokinole Club at the 21st World Crokinole Championship. Club members that attended gathered for a photo outside the Tavistock & District Recreation Centre during the tournament.
The Scone Club, from left to right are Neil Cook, Marilyn Thompson, Carol Cook, Carman Hodgkinson, Evelyn Hodgkinson, Sherry Anstett, Jeff Hall, Peter Carter, Jo-Ann Carter, Francis Zettler, Eugenia Zettler, Janet Diebold, Harvey Bell, Cathy Kuepfer, Murray Mizen, Vera Gutzke, Clare Kuepfer, Doreen Sulkye, Maxine Whitmore, Randy Harris, and Debbie Harris.
Women are also playing a bigger role in the day’s events with 14 women registered in the competitive singles category. Once again, the Top Female was Beverly Vaillancourt of Penetanguishene, who has won the Karin Jeske Award for the past seven years. Her daughter-in-law, Jennifer Carstairs of Penetanguishene was second and Christina Campbell of London was third.
This year’s early bird registration winners of the two official spring jackets embroidered with the World Crokinole Championship emblem were Sarah Beierling from Dorchester and Will Moore from Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
The official Crokinole board winner was Douglas Neill of Summerside, PEI. Evelyn Hodgkinson of Paisley won $218 in the 50/50 draw. The youngest girl was Rachel Beierling, 7, of Dorchester and the youngest boy, Ezekiel Jongsma, 5, of Hamilton. The eldest lady was Norma Morrisey, 85, of Charlottetown, PEI and the eldest man was Aden Brubacher, 88, of Elmira.
Back in 2013, for the 15th anniversary of the WCC championship, there were 10 crokinole players present who had played at all 15 tournaments. This year, there were 8 of those 10 who were playing for the 21st time.
The 8 players who have been at all 21 tournaments include, from the left, Nyle Eby, Robert Mader, Oscar Weber, Ray Beierling, Raymond Kappes, Jason Beierling, Clare Kuepfer and Lloyd Wiseman.
From 5 years of age to 88 years, everyone once again enjoyed a well-run tournament with lots of action, fellowship and fun. The number of individual registrants was up from 375 to 386 this year with the total number playing throughout the day exceeding 575.
For final statistics and photographs please go to the web site at www.worldcrokinole.com or visit nationalcrokinoleassociation.com for videos and commentary on the day’s events.
- 30 -