‘I flew fighter jet after giving Dutch darts lift-off – I felt like Maverick’
One of darts’ Top Guns, Raymond van Barnveld, flew a fighter jet as reward for giving the game lift-off within the Netherlands.
Van Barneveld will perpetually be referred to as the person who put darts on the map within the land of Cruyff, Van Gogh, windmills and tulips. As just lately because the Nineties, it was nonetheless considered a distinct segment pastime within the nation.
But after he received the BDO World Championship for the primary time in 1998, the Netherlands turned a darts-mad nation. Barney’s victory paved the way in which for a gluttony Dutch dartists, now led by Michael van Gerwen, who remains to be two away from Van Barneveld’s nationwide report of 5 world titles.
READ MORE: Loved-up Raymond van Barneveld dreaming of PDC Darts World Championship glory once more
It’s 25 years since Van Barneveld received his first world crown on the Lakeside. That maiden title took the Netherlands abruptly, however his second only a yr later in 1999 noticed him fated as one of many nation’s elite sportsmen.
He had a tulip named after him, was awarded the nation’s equal of the MBE and was whisked up in an F16 jet, even given the controls at one level.
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(Image: Getty)
“I felt a bit like Maverick in Top Gun,” the Target Darts ace tells Daily Star Sport forward of his 2024 Ally Pally marketing campaign, which begins on Friday night time in opposition to Radek Szaganski.
“We flew Mach 3 [supersonic speed] and on the finish, I used to be flying the plane myself. I had a parachute and all with me as a result of there’s all the time a second the place issues can go improper.
“We did unusual stunts and, after we had been touchdown, my ears had been hurting like hell due to the strain. I had bother with my ears for a number of days after.
(Image: PDC)
“In 98, people weren’t prepared for me to win the trophy. There was a lot more interest when I went back in 99. After the second one, I achieved the equivalent of the MBE, I’m a Knight of the Orange Army and met the queen and the prince.
“It’s amazing how time flies. My children were just little back then, now I’m a grandfather. And my grandchildren are now the same age as my children were back then.”
Van Barneveld is gearing up for his newest crack on the PDC World Championship, which he final received in 2007, beating nice rival Phil Taylor in one of many biggest finals of all time on the Circus Tavern. He admits he isn’t the pressure of outdated, however nonetheless maintains he’s able to going deep into the tournaments
“It’s not realistic to say I’m going to lift the trophy because there are better players and more in-form players than myself,” he admits.
“But I know I’m capable of doing it. I know, if I have a good two weeks, I can beat everyone I want, if my head is good. It’s not about the material because that’s perfect, it’s about how they show up against you and how you play.”
The Special Edition Barney25 darts to commemorate the 25-year anniversary of RVB’s first World Championship are in the stores now at www.target-darts.co.uk