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The Star
09-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Top Asian darter Ryusei Azemoto makes history by becoming the first Japanese to bag the prestigious Selangor Open men's singles title
In a blistering start to the Selangor Darts Championships, Japan's Ryusei Azemoto proved to be in unbeatable form as he displayed superb skills to bag the men's singles title in the opening day of the tournament. The title on Friday was also the Japanese ace's first WDF title. Nicknamed 'Perseus' for his superb skills, Ryusei won the tournament after beating Malaysian star Muhammad Haikal Rusli 5-3 in the final, producing a 161-out in the last match and averaging an impressive 90.4 in the tournament. Besides the championships' trophy, the Japanese also took home the top prize money of RM2,000, for his efforts. Ryusei was in fine form from the very start was unbeaten throughout the tournament. The darter, who also took part for Japan in the PDF World Cup recently, then defeated Tenooth Subramaniam 4-1 in the semifinals. The Japanese star, however, was given a run for the money in the final, by another local star Muhammad Haikal Rusli, a surprise finalist from KL - playing in his first Selangor Open final. In a very tense and exciting final, the more experienced Ryusei finally prevailed and won 5-3 and ensured he bagged the top honours. The women's tournament was just as exciting. The star of the show was expected to be Japan superstar darter Mayumi Ouchi, who is currently the No.1 ranked player in the WDF Asia Women's list. She was also part of the incredible Japan team that won last year's WDF Asia Pacific Cup title. Her teammate, Yukie Sakaguchi, who was also part of team Japan who won the Asia Pacific title, was also expected to be among the frontrunners. But it was Mayu Shimuzu, also a Japanese national player, who was in superb fform throughout the tournament and blasted her way into the final. But Philippines Janice Penero Hinojales absolutely had other ideas too. She is the top ranked Philippines women player and also the reigning Cosmo Malaysia Open 2024 Women Singles category champion. And Janice once again proved to be unbeatable in Malaysian soil when she produced exhilarating skills to win the tournament and that too after outclassing Mayu 4-0 in the final. For her efforts, Janice also bagged RM1,000 and championship trophy for winning the title. "Almost every match was an exciting tussle. It was a fantastic start to the tournament. I believe it will continue to just as exciting tomorrow (Saturday - May 10)," said Selangor Darts Association president C. Pathmanathan. For the record, the Selangor Open is the first WDF ranked event in Malaysia in 2025 which will be followed by Cosmo Malaysia Open 2025 (WDF silver ranked category) on 22-24th August. Some of the world's best darters have already confirmed their participation for this year's tournament which comes under the WDF bronze category and the competition for top prizes is expected to be red-hot. Besides the best bulls-eye specialists from Malaysia, top darters from Brunei, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Japan will also be vying for the top honours in the tournament. The teams from Sabah and Sarawak were big in number and are also expected to be among the frontrunners in the next two days. The red-hot competition, continues on Saturday as the darters do battle in the men's and women's doubles events. The highlight of the event, which is the team competition, will be played on Sunday (May 11).
The Star
08-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
'All set for the bulls-eye' Star darters from South-East Asia and region all set for intense battles at Selangor Darts Championships from Friday (May 9)
With record entries and record prize money on offer and not to forget some of the best darters from Asia already in the competition, this year's Selangor Open Darts Championships 2025 is set to be a starry affair and also offer exciting tense clashes between the top players. The much-anticipated event which is expected to feature all the top darters from South-East Asia will be held at Ballroom L2, Quayside Mall at Twentyfive 7 from Friday and ending on Sunday. The organisers announced in a media release thanking all parties involved in making the tournament a big success in conjunction with Selangor Darts Association's 15th Anniversary. The organisers also added that they thanked the Youth and Sports Ministry and the Malaysian Darts Association for their big help and continuous support in making the tournament a success. They added that the Selangor local government and its departments also gave much assistance in ensuring the tournament takes off in a grand manner. This year's tournament has a confirmation of 73 entries for the team event and a record 34 entries for the women's doubles section. "This is indeed a special one for us. This is the best way to celebrate our (association's) 15th anniversary in a big way. This tournament will feature some of the very best stars from Asia and also the South-East Asia region," said Selangor Darts Association president C. Pathmanathan. Besides the best bulls-eye specialists from Malaysia, top darters from Brunei, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Thailand and Japan ill also be vying for the top honours in the tournament. The teams from Sabah and Sarawak were big in number and are also expected to be among the frontrunners. There will also be14 teams from Sarawak and another eight from Sabah this year, also a record entry in the tournament books. "This year will also a record prize money on offer for the darters. We aim to make this tournament a top competition in the region in the future. "I also like take this opportunity to say thanks to Quayside Mall for being the venue sponsors, they have been very supportive to us from the start. I also like to thank all the other sponsors involved in this tournament. "A special thank also to the Ministry of Youth and Sports and also the Malaysian Darts Association." Some of the world's best darters have already confirmed their participation for this year's tournament which comes under the WDF bronze category and the competition for top prizes is expected to be red-hot. The star of the show will definitely be Japan superstar darter Mayumi Ouchi, who is currently the No.1 ranked player in the WDF Asia Women's list. She was also part of the incredible Japan team that won last year's WDF Asia Pacific Cup title. Mayumi, however, is expected to face a stiff challenge from her teammate, Yukie Sakaguchi, who was also part of team Japan, who won the Asia Pacific title. But what makes her a formidable opponent is that she was also the gold medal singles category winner at the Asia Pacific tournament. Another conformation for the tournament is Mayu Shimuzu, who is currently ranked No.14 in the WDF Asia women's singles ranking list. Japan will also be represented by the brother-sister combination of Yuta Hanashi and Momoka Hanashi for the tournament, both who are touted as future stars of the sport. Another Japanese star on stage for the meet is Ryusei Azemoto -- the Japanese professional soft-tip and steel-tip darts player also represented his country at the 2024 PDC World Cup of Darts. Philippines will have Janice Penero Hinojales leading the way. She is the top ranked Philippines women player and also the reigning Cosmo Malaysia Open 2024 Women Singles category champion. Malaysia's challenge will be led by Maisuriyati Md Zain, who is currently ranked No.7 in the Asia Women singles list. She had recently won the 2024 Kuching City Open singles title and is definitely primed up to give the top Japanese darters a run for their money. Malaysia's charge will also joined by the duo of Zarina Khan and Nur Sazleena Muliyono. Both the local darters are currently ranked joined 11th in the WDF Asia Women's singles category list. Nur Sazleena is also the top ranked Malaysia women player and Cosmo Malaysia Open 2024 Women Singles' finalist. The men's section is also expected to see heated battles for top honours in both the singles and team events, the current International Sabah Open champion Tenooth Sivalingam, will be aiming for back-to-back singles title at the Selangor Open Championships. Among the other top stars for the tournament are Malaysians Faizal Mohamad (ranked No.7 in the WDF Asia Men singles category), Mohd Nasir Jantan (won two titles at the PDC Asian Tour Title in 2023 / Malaysian doubles pair at the 2024 PDC World Cup in Germany) and Zulrizan Azdan (the 2019 WDF Men Singles COSMO Malaysia Open champion). For the record, the Selangor Open is the first WDF ranked event in Malaysia in 2025 which will be followed by Cosmo Malaysia Open 2025 (WDF silver ranked category) on 22-24th August. Countries confirmed participation besides Malaysia are from Brunei, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Japan. Darters from other South-East Asian nations and other Asian countries are also expected to confirm their participation by end of the month. For more event details: WhatsAPP 012-3132663 -- (Secretary SEDA) or for Sponsorship details: WhatsAPP 012-3431010 -- C. Pathmanathan (Presiden - SEDA)
