The first day at the Kappa 2009 Women’s World 9-Ball Championships began with a press conference. Local officials from Shengyeng welcomed the players to the tournament as well as recognising and thanking sponsors.

64 Female players are taking part in this years event and in the first round will be split into 8 groups of 8 players, each group will feature one seeded player drawn from the WPA Rankings. The groups will play a double elimination format with two players on the winners side and one-loss side prgressing to the knockout stages.

In addition to the large staff responsible for carrying out the event, 40 Chinese volunteers were chosen to assist in these efforts. After the government officials made their welcomes the General Manager of title sponsor, Kappa Sportswear, also made a welcoming address and spoke of how pleased they were to be associated with such a prestigious sporting event.

It is also refreshing to see the involvement of a sponsor from outside of the Billiards industry, something that is required in order to drive the sport forward.

WPA President Ian Anderson then expressed his gratitude to everyone involved in the event and his pleasure that the event has been presented in a first-class order, the skill of the referees, the quality of the equipment and the beauty of the venue. He also spoke of how he looked forward to returning to Shengyeng next year.

Then it was off to the grand welcoming banquet. 250 players and honored guests were feted to a massive 20-course meal that left no appetite unsatisfied. Gymnasts entertained the crowd as they ate. It must be said, this was a magnificent opening to what portends to be an event that will be difficult for others to match.