Malaysian players take top team honors at 10th Malaysian Cosmo Open Darts Championship; Filipinos shine in single events

The 10th Cosmo Malaysian Open Darts Championship ended in spectacular fashion with a new record set after two Malaysian teams advanced to the finals of the tournament held at the Flamingo Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

For the first time since the 10th edition of the tournament, two local teams fought for the main prize. Ultimately, the stars of the tournament were the Dojo Spartans team, which defeated Team Dury in the final.

For their efforts, Team Spartans went home with the grand prize of RM10,000 along with a grand trophy and medals, while runner-up Team Dury received RM4,000.

Team Spartans were represented by Mohd Nasir Jantan, Tan Jean Ming, Tengku Hadzali Shah, Timothy Ryan Theseira and Sar Kok Wai.

There was also some consolation for losing semi-finalists Team Metrix and D Amazing Borneo from Team A, as both teams received RM2,000 for their efforts.

In the women’s doubles, Team Kumpadres defeated JK Rebels in the final to win the top prize of RM1,500. The runners-up received RM800 for their efforts.

The losing semi-finalists were Dojo Eagle and Team Cordella, and both received RM400 as a consolation prize.

In a tournament full of fierce and exciting clashes, the best darts specialists from the Philippines took top positions in both men’s and women’s singles tournaments during the tournament held at the Flamingo Hotel.

Filipino Ryan Jay Galceran conquered it all and dominated the men’s singles section with his precise aiming and hitting in a tournament that attracted almost 550 darters.

He defeated Malaysian Mohd Sairol Mohamed Salim in the final, while Malaysian Andre Kevin Roxario and fellow Filipino Jhasfher Jhaf Doria lost in the semi-finals.

Galceran went home with RM3,000 and the title trophy. The runners-up received RM1,500, the losing semi-finalists won RM750 each, and the losing quarter-finalists also received RM300 in prize money.

The Filipinos were equally impressive in the women’s singles section. Janice Hinojales won after defeating Malaysian Nur Sazleen Muliyano in the final.

As in the men’s category, another Filipino and a Malaysian in Giselle Bulahao and Noratikah Dorhat were lost as semifinalists.

For her top-class performances, Hinojales won RM1,500 and a trophy; Nur Sazleena won RM750, while the losing semi-finalists went home with RM400 each.

The 10th edition of the darts championship was truly special. A record number of over 750 darters from 150 teams competing for the main prizes entered the event, both in the men’s and women’s categories.

In addition to the men’s and women’s singles titles, darters also competed for the men’s and women’s doubles team titles. The finals will take place on Sunday evening.

In addition to the record entry, a record 12 foreign countries also participated in the Malaysian Open. Apart from the Philippines, the tournament featured top teams from Southeast Asia, namely Singapore, Thailand, Brunei and Indonesia.

Other foreign bands that completed the list were from Japan, India, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Hong Kong and Ireland.

Malaysia Darts Association president Nancy Ambrose said organizers would do their best to make the tournament a greater success next year.

“10. edition is truly special and we are also very grateful for the excellent support from the Malaysian Ministry of Sports as well as our main sponsor Cosmo Seike Ltd Japan. Our goal is to make it even better and bigger next year, with more teams and top darters participating in the tournament,” said Nancy.

Association secretary C. Pathmanathan said that the importance of darts has been increasing since it was recognized as a full-fledged sport by the Sports Ministry.

“The support from the Ministry of Sports was good. We hope to have more sponsors next year as we aim to make the tournament a major event in the international calendar,” Pathmanathan said.

The participants were also pleased with the first-class preparation and hoped for more such tournaments in Malaysia.

Team Darts Mekanix team manager Michael Suresh said: “The sport really has a bright future in the country. It is a sport that is played by people from all walks of life and I hope to see more young people take part in the game. Darts is a fantastic game internationally and Malaysians can earn a lot by playing here full-time.

“We need more tournaments like this and even more training programs for youth. Only with greater support from sponsors and the Ministry of Sports can we achieve this goal,” Michael added.