Chiêm Hồng Thái finished as runner-up in the Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 2026.

VHO - Unable to spring a surprise against "living legend" Frederic Caudron (Belgium) in the final, billiards player Chiêm Hồng Thái won the runner-up position at the 2026 Ho Chi Minh City World Cup 3-Cushion Carom Billiards Tournament.

Entering the final match held on the evening of May 24th at the Nguyen Du Gymnasium (Ho Chi Minh City), Frederic Caudron had a good start, scoring a series of 6 points in the first turn.

The final match between Chiem Hong Thai and Frederic Caudron

Shortly afterwards, the Belgian "genius" continued his scoring spree with a five-point shot to extend the lead to 11-0.

Chiêm Hồng Thái put in a strong effort, narrowing the score to 7-13. While leading 23-15, Frederic Caudron scored a series of 15 points to increase the lead to 38-15 after the first quarter.

In the second half, Frederic Caudron continued to demonstrate his exceptional skill, maintaining his advantage to win the match 50-25 after 22 innings, thus claiming the championship. This also marks the third time the Belgian player has won the title in Ho Chi Minh City.

Chiêm Hồng Thái congratulates his opponent on their victory.

Meanwhile, Chiêm Hồng Thái secured the runner-up position for the first time on home soil.

Earlier, Chiêm Hồng Thái had successively defeated his compatriot, former world champion Bao Phương Vinh, in the round of 16, overcome Dick Jaspers - the world number 3 Dutch player with 32 World Cup titles - in the quarterfinals, and also won against the world number 2 player - Eddy Merckx (Belgium) - who had won 14 World Cup titles - in the semifinals.

The four players with the best results in the tournament.

Having advanced past the group stage for the first time, Chiêm Hồng Thái went straight to the final, demonstrating his remarkable progress.

This success not only affirms the talent of the player born in 1999 but also reflects the strong development of Vietnamese billiards on the international stage.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/chiem-hong-thai-gianh-ngoi-a-quan-tphcm-world-cup-2026-231188.html