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2022 International Tournaments
Hegoalde (South Basque Country-AKA Spain)
Jai Alai Winter Series--Gernika--January 19-March 20, 2022 (9 Full Match Videos)
Jai Alai World Tour
Donostia (San Sebastian) Grand Slam (May 14-June 11, 2022) (4 Full Match Videos)
Jai Alive 2.0
+++++++
Iparralde (North Basque Country--AKA France)
Cesta Punta Pro Tour
Cesta All Star Donibane Lohizune (Saint-Jean-de-Luz) (April 19-28, 2022) (9 Full Match Videos)
Cesta Punta Summer League (Biarritz, Pau) (May 6-June 17, 2022) (6 Full Match Videos)
Grand Slam, Espoir (Group B) (June 22-August 25)
Donibane Lohizune (Saint-Jean-de-Luz) Grand Slam (Group A) (July 5-August 25) (4 Master and 1 SLAM) (15 Full Match Videos)
Gant d'Or (Biarritz) (July 6-August 24) (4 Master and 1 SLAM)
Grand Chistera (Biarritz) (July 8-August 25, every Tuesday--Outdoor Cesta Punta--3 player teams, 75 meter court, no helmets)
+++++++
Fronton Mexico (Mexico City)
Tourneo Betway (May 19-26) (14 Full Match Videos)
+++++++
Dania Jai Alai (Dania Beach Florida)
Battle at the Palace (April 1-10) 14 Full Match Videos)
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Fronton Mexico, Mexico City (1--Frontons.net)(2--City--Wikipedia returned to live Jai Alai with Torneou Betway, May 19-26, 2022. It was a tournament of 8 teams, organized into two groups of 4. It opened with a Round Robin in each group. The top two teams played in the Final on May 26. The two second place teams played for 3rd place.
All Matches were 30 point partidos.
Point System: Win= 1 point. Loss= 0 points. Ties were broken by: A) Point Differential, and B) if there was still at tie, it was broken by a partido match to 5 points.
Complete rules of the Tournament (Spanish), a complete schedule, and player pages are available at the Main Tournament Page
This blog will be organized as has been the case for all recent Partido Tournaments in the Basque Country, i.e. a Non-Spoiler section with links to full match videos that were provided by Fronton Mexico Youtube There were two matches each day. They were not available live but are available on demand.
The Players:
GROUP A:
GROUP B:
*JUAN ELIZALDE HAS BEEN REPLACED BY MAURICIO ZAPATA AFTER THE FIRST MATCH DUE TO A CALF INJURY
News article: (Fronton Mexico) (Spanish)
=============
NON-SPOILER:
NOTE: WHILE THERE IS SOUND FOR THESE VIDEOS, THERE IS NO COMMENTARY
FULL MATCH VIDEOS FOR THE ENTIRE TOURNAMENT ARE AVAILABLE VIA FRONTON MEXICO YOUTUBE PLAYLIST. THERE IS CONFUSION IN THE MATCH ORDER AND PLAYERS ARE NOT LISTED IN THE MATCH TITLES, SO GOOD LUCK IN TRYING TO MATCH UP THE MATCHES AS LABELED AND THE ACTUAL ORDER OF THE MATCHES IN THE TOURNAMENT. IN ORDER TO MATCH THE TEAMS TO THE MATCHES, USE THE MAIN TOURNAMENT PAGE AND SCROLL TO "CALENDARIO" 1ST, 3RD, AND 5TH DAYS WERE GROUP A MATCHES, WHILE THE 2ND, 4TH AND 6TH WERE GROUP B MATCHES. THE 3RD PLACE AND FINAL MATCHES WERE HELD ON THE 7TH DAY.
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SPOILERS--SCORES, RECORDS, STANDINGS, SELECTED MATCH ARTICLES
Notable:
Group B winners Ludovic Laduche and debutant Ion Ibarluzea capped a perfect 4-0 Tournament with a 30-21 win in the Championship match, attended by around 1,700, over Group A winners Jon Tambourindeguy and Jose Perez, but they reached the final by winning the most exciting match of the Tournament, a final League elimination match against David Iturbide and Ruben Bailo. I-B were in control of the match for much of its duration, and were ahead 29-26, needing only one more point to advance to the Final. That point never came, as L-I closed by winning the last 4 points. After that, the final was almost an anticlimax. In total, three of the league matches ended 30-29, and two more ended 30-26.
Ibarluzea's quality of play was noted in the print accounts of the Tournament, especially as it was his first as a professional.
Group A Jokin Arbe and Theo Laborde also played very well, missing out on their chance at a berth in the finals due to a 30-29 loss to eventual Group winners J.Tambourindeguy--Perez in a League match on May 21.
Interestingly, the runners up in both Groups were the most dominant teams in the Tournament in terms of net points, A-L winning their Group by 8 points, I-B winning theirs by 13. Unfortunately, both teams found themselves on the wrong end of the two points that counted the most.
MAY 25
DAY 7
3RD PLACE MATCH
JOKIN ARBE--THEO LABORDE 30
DAVID ITURBIDE-RUBEN BAILO 22
FULL MATCH VIDEO: (FULL MATCH VIDEO)
FINAL:
LUDOVIC LADUCHE--ION IBARLUZEA 30
JON TAMBOURINDEGUY--JOSE PEREZ 21
Final Match article (Hitza) (Basque)
Final Match article (Milenio) (Spanish) (Monterrey, Mexico)
Jai Alai News Facebook article (Spanish) (For Deepl.com English Translation see below, the match links)
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FINAL LEAGUE STANDINGS
GROUP A:
JON TAMBOURINDEGUY--JOSE PEREZ (3-0, 3 PTS, +11)
JOKIN ARBE--THEO LABORDE (2-1, 2 PTS, +19)
CHRISTOPHE OLHA--GUILLEN OYHENARD (1-2, 1 PT, -8)
DANIEL INCLAN--JEROME PORTET (0-3, 0 PTS -22)
GROUP B:
LUDOVIC LADUCHE--ION IBARLUZEA (3-0, 3 PTS, +15)
DAVID ITURBIDE--RUBEN BAILO (2-1, 2 PTS, +28)
AARON GONZALEZ--TXABI INZA (1-2, 1 PT, -12)
JON ZULAIKA--JUAN ELIZALDE/MAURICIO ZAPATA (0-3, 0 PTS, -31)
++++++++++
MAY 24
GROUP B:
MATCH 11:
AARON GONZALEZ--TXABI INZA 30 (1-2, 1 PT, -12)
JON ZULAIKA--MAURICIO ZAPATA 23 (0-3, 0 PTS, -31)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions).
MATCH 12:
LUDOVIC LADUCHE--ION IBARLUZEA 30 (3-0, 3 PTS, +15)
DAVID ITURBIDE--RUBEN BAILO 29 (2-1, +2 PTS, +28)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions).
MATCH ARTICLE FOR BOTH MATCHES (JAI ALAI Y MAS FACEBOOK) (For Deepl.com English Translation see below, the match links)
LADUCHE-IBARLUZEA WIN GROUP B
ITURBIDE-BAILO FINISH 2ND
++++++++++
MAY 23:
GROUP A:
MATCH 9:
JON TAMBOURINDEGUY--JOSE PEREZ 30 (3-0, 3 PTS, +11)
DANIEL INCLAN--JEROME PORTET 24 (0-3, 0 PTS -22)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with the player introductions)
J. TAMBOURINDEGUY-PEREZ WIN GROUP A
ARBE-LABORDE FINISH 2ND
MATCH 10:
JOKIN ARBE--THEO LABORDE 30 (2-1, 2 PTS, +19)
CHRISTOPHE OLHA--GUILLEN OYHENARD 25 (1-2, 1 PT, -8)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with the player introductions)
++++++++++
MAY 22
GROUP B:
MATCH 7:
DAVID ITURBIDE--RUBEN BAILO 30 (2-0, 2 PTS, +29)
JON ZULAIKA--MAURICIO ZAPATA 16 (0-2, 0 PTS -24)
ZULAIKA-ELIZALDE/ZAPATA ARE ELIMINATED
MATCH 8
LUDOVIC LADUCHE--ION IBARLUZEA 30 (2-0, 2 PTS, +14)
AARON GONZALEZ--TXABI INZA 26 (0-2, 0 PTS, -19)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with the player introductions)
GONZALEZ-INZA ARE ELIMINATED
++++++++++
MAY 21:
GROUP A:
MATCH 5:
JON TAMBOURINDEGUY--JOSE PEREZ 30 (2-0, 2 PTS, +5)
JOKIN ARBE--THEO LABORDE 29 (1-1, 1 PT, +14)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions)
MATCH 6:
CHRISTOPHE OLHA--GUILLEN OYHENARD 30 (1-1, 1 PT, -3)
DANIEL INCLAN--JEROME PORTET 29 (0-2, 0 PTS, -16)
INCLAN-PORTET ARE ELIMINATED
++++++++++
MAY 20:
GROUP B:
MATCH 3:
LUDOVIC LADUCHE--ION IBARLUZEA 30 (1-0, 1 PT, +10)
JON ZULAIKA--JUAN ELIZALDE 20 (0-1, 0 PTS, -10)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions)
MATCH 4:
DAVID ITURBIDE--RUBEN BAILO 30 (1-0, 1 PT), +15)
AARON GONZALEZ--TXABI INZA 15 (0-1, 0 PTS, -15)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions)
++++++++++
MAY 19:
GROUP A:
MATCH 1:
JON TAMBOURINDEGUY--JOSE PEREZ 30 (1-0, 1 POINT, +4)
CHRISTOPHE OLHA--GUILLEN OYHENARD 26 (0-1, 0 POINTS -4)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with the player introductions, there is about 22 minutes of video before this. Note: there is no sound until 1:17:07 on the video.
MATCH 2:
JOKIN ARBE--THEO LABORDE 30 (1-0, 1 PT, +15)
DANIEL INCLAN--JEROME PORTET 15 (0-1, 0 PTS -15)
FULL MATCH VIDEO (The link begins with player introductions).
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FINAL MATCH ARTICLE (JAI ALAI NEWS FACEBOOK--TRANSLATED BY DEEPL.COM
LADUCHE-IBARLUZEA, CHAMPIONS IN MEXICO!
Laduche-Ibarluzea 30 Tambourindeguy-Perez 21
The forward from Getaria and the defender from Markina-Xemein have been the deserved champions of the International Tournament played in "el Mexico". In addition to the final, they have won the three group matches corresponding to group B:
Laduche-Ibarluzea 30-20 Zulaika-Elizalde.
Laduche-Ibarluzea 30-26 Aaron-Inza
Laduche-Ibarluzea 30-29 Iturbide-Bailo
Congratulations especially to Ion Ibarluzea, who has participated for the first time in a professional tournament, and has done it in a magnificent venue.
The historic Fronton Mexico. Debuting in Mexico and playing in front of 1,700 fans shouting and cheering all the time is a real luxury!
In the match for third place, another markinarra, Jokin Arbe, has achieved the victory. Together with the young lohitzun (St. Jean-de-Luz) Theo Laborde, he has won 30-22 against the pair from Navarre, ex Dania, Iturbide-Bailo.
In this new historical cycle, the important tournaments, the repercussion and the social recognition of the pelotari are in the Basque Country. The summer calendar is settled and the winter one, after much work and sacrifice, has come to stay. The international tournaments, even if they are of a lower level, serve as experience for other pelotaris, and keep the fans in those countries.
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MATCH 11-12 MATCH ARTICLES (JAI ALAI Y MAS FACEBOOK--TRANSLATED BY DEEPL.COM
Laduche-Ibarluzea gave a sensational "turn".
THE PALACE VIBRATED AGAIN!
How much emotion was experienced yesterday at the Palacio de la Pelota, during the second and last match of the day and where the pair of Laduche and Ibarluzea gave a spectacular "turn" to the scoreboard to take the victory and place themselves, undefeated, in the final of the Jai Alai 2022 Open to be played this Wednesday at the Fronton Mexico.
It was a very well played match throughout the entire route and where the four pelotaris on the court offered true works of art with spikes that made the audience stand up.
In the first ten, Iturbide and Bailo took a few points of advantage, but as soon as the second ten started, Laduche began to shine more and more, always supported by a defender like Ibarluzea who was also accentuating himself in the immense court of the Palacio de la Pelota and ended up offering a great spectacle.
In the first ten minutes, Iturbide and Bailo seemed to be on their way to a clear victory. After the first half, it seemed a little tighter, but they would take the win. In the last ten, especially after that 29-26 in their favor, it seemed that no one would take away the ticket to the final, but...
Laduche and Ibarluzea, very much in the style of "Chapulin Colorado", as if to say: "They didn't count on my cunning", scored four consecutive goals, all of them charged with great emotion and encouraged by a public that just at that moment began at the top of their lungs with the cry of: "reds", "reds" that made even the most remote corner of the Palacio de la Pelota shudder.
It was a match of great quality, with spectacular goals and a movie-like ending.
In spite of the defeat, we liked very much the game of Iturbide, a happy pelotari, who lives intensely every time, with a very easy, elegant and forceful game and, of course, also "the manners" of Bailo, who in the back showed security and that "casca" tasty from both sides.
Laduche, an old acquaintance of the Mexican fans, played from less to more and ended up receiving the ovation of a public that recognized, with its applause, each and every one of the great plays he made yesterday.
Ibarlucea, for his part, is getting better every day and made it very clear that he has a very promising future in the world of pelota.
Laduche and Ibarluce will face this Wednesday the also undefeated Tambour and Perez, in the grand final of the Jai Alai Open 2022 at the Palacio de la Pelota court.
IN THE FIRST OF THE NIGHT
Zulaica and Zapata (who came in to take the place of the injured Elizalde) lost to the pair formed by Aaron and "El Sargento" Inza with a score of 30-23.
The truth is that there is little to comment on this match, where there were many more errors than successes. However, we cannot fail to mention a right rebound by Zulaica that was a true poem and the "costadillo", almost at the end of the game, which he put in "just like that". It was precise and beautiful.
Today, from 8 o'clock in the evening, the last day will be played and we will have the opportunity to enjoy two succulent matches. One for the third and fourth place of the competition and, of course, the grand final of the Jai Alai Open 2022.
The matches promise great emotions,
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2022 International Tournaments
Hegoalde (South Basque Country-AKA Spain)
Jai Alai Winter Series--Gernika--January 19-March 20, 2022 (9 Full Match Videos)
Jai Alai World Tour
Donostia (San Sebastian) Grand Slam (May 14-June 11, 2022) (4 Full Match Videos)
+++++++
Iparralde (North Basque Country--AKA France)
Cesta Punta Pro Tour
Cesta All Star Donibane Lohizune (Saint-Jean-de-Luz) (April 19-28, 2022) (9 Full Match Videos)
Cesta Punta Summer League (Biarritz, Pau) (May 6-June 17, 2022) (6 Full Match Videos)
Grand Slam, Espoir (Group B) (June 22-August 25)
Donibane Lohizune (Saint-Jean-de-Luz) Grand Slam (Group A) (July 5-August 25) (4 Master and 1 SLAM) (15 Full Match Videos)
Gant d'Or (Biarritz) (July 6-August 24) (4 Master and 1 SLAM)
Pau Cup (July 15-September 2) (2 Master and 1 SLAM)
Grand Chistera (Biarritz) (July 8-August 25, every Tuesday--Outdoor Cesta Punta--3 player teams, 75 meter court, no helmets)
+++++++
Fronton Mexico (Mexico City)
Tourneo Betway (May 19-26) (14 Full Match Videos)
+++++++
Dania Jai Alai (Dania Beach Florida)
Battle at the Palace (April 1-10) 14 Full Match Videos)
=========
