Five Germans for the first time: Hempel qualifies for World Darts Championship
Florian Hempel qualified for the 2024 World Darts Championship at the last minute, giving Germany a fifth starter for the first time ever. The Cologne native prevailed in the PDPA Qualifier on Monday and will therefore take part at Alexandra Palace in London. Hempel won his final against top seed Alan Soutar from Scotland 7:5. Pascal Rupprecht (6:7 against Croatia's Boris Krcmar) and Daniel Klose (5:7 against England's Darren Webster) narrowly missed out on qualification.
Before Hempel, Gabriel Clemens, Martin Schindler, Ricardo Pietreczko and Dragutin Horvat had already qualified for the World Championships, which run from December 15 to January 3. Four players were the maximum from a German perspective until the upcoming edition. For the 33-year-old Hempel, the success comes as a surprise after a rather weak season. However, the former handball goalkeeper has also played in the 2022 and 2023 World Cups. In 2022, he reached the third round.
After securing his spot, Florian Hempel will join Gabriel Clemens, Martin Schindler, Ricardo Pietreczko, and Dragutin Horvat at the 2024 WM, marking the first time Germany fields five players in the PDC-organized World Darts Championship. Despite a challenging season, Hempel qualified for the event, having previously competed in the 2022 and 2023 World Cups, reaching the third round in the former.
Source: www.dpa.com
