We interviewed M.Erdene, an employee of Oyu Tolgoi LLC after he won a gold medal for the Asian Darts Tournament in the doubles division.
Congratulations on winning the championship.
Thank you.
Can you tell us about the tournament you just participated in?
The 9th ADA Tournament was held in Hong Kong on 19-21 April. Two hundred and forty eight players from 20 countries participated. I led the darts team of 5 players from Mongolia. In the doubles division, which I won, 128 teams played in 32 groups, based on an elimination principle. We played against a team from Belgium for the championship title and won 2:0. This is the first time our country has won an important prize for this division.
Can a Belgian team participate in an Asian tournament?
It is an international tournament so teams from any country can participate. In addition to all the Asian countries; players from the USA, Belgium, Norway, and Spain participated in this tournament.
How many years have you been playing this sport? What other tournaments have you participated in before?
This tournament is my 4th international tournament. Because of the cost of travel, I mainly participate in Asian tournaments. It has been almost 20 years since this sport was developed in Mongolia. Initially, people thought about darts not as a sport, but as a game. Now people are more accepting of darts as a sport. I first learned about this sport when I was little. I actively took it up in 1998 and I am now the head of the Mongolian Darts Association. I have been working at Oyu Tolgoi for three years. During the last year, I have been training in my 14-day vacation period and at the mine site, I train in the evening after work. I have introduced darts to my colleagues at Oyu Tolgoi. Our association does not have funding, a training hall or gym but lately people have become very interested in darts. I’m very happy that I work at Oyu Tolgoi because I have the financial security to take part in any tournament and I can also train in my free time. These are the advantages of working at Oyu Tolgoi.
What are specifics of the sport of darts?
Darts originated in England during the 17th century. It requires no special gym or hall for training, all you need is a 2.5 metres wide area. It is not an expensive sport, you can acquire all equipment you need for 250,000 MNT. Once you purchase the equipment, you can use them for many years. If darts break during the game, you can repair them and still use them. This sport helps people to improve their memory and thinking skills. It is not about just tossing darts. The player has to calculate where to hit first and the think about the next target. Darts requires concentration, good eyesight and physical coordination. You can spend 2-3 hours unknowingly trying to get high score. Basically, you take two steps in 2.3 metres distance for every 30 seconds. They say, when you play pool you can walk for 5km, when you play darts, you walk even further.
When is your next tournament?
There is an open tournament in Beijing in July and in August, the world cup will be held in Shanghai. I have received an invitation to participate in an international tournament in Las Vegas in the USA, in October this year. As a player participating in many tournaments, you gain experience and learn from other players. For darts the world championship is the ultimate title, like the Olympic games. Only the Asian champion is eligible to participate in the world cup championship, the double’s division is not included in this. The winner of the singles division in the continental tournament qualifies to enter the world championship. Our players are not at this stage yet.
Thank you for the interview. We wish you success in your sport.
Thank you.
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