A FINAL TO REMEMBER: 2024 WORLD POOL CHAMPIONSHIP

The 2024 World Pool Championship final in Jeddah was more than just a match — it was an epic showcase of heart, resilience, and world-class shotmaking that pushed the limits of the modern game.

Fedor Gorst and Eklent Kaçi came into the iconic Green Halls knowing only one would walk away with history. For Gorst, it was a chance to cement his place as a generational great with a second world title. For Kaçi, it was the opportunity to claim his first world crown after years of knocking at the door. The result? A hill-hill classic that will go down as the longest final in World Nineball Tour history — a race-to-15 that became a race of nerves, grit, and endurance.

From the outset, Gorst looked dialled in. After winning the lag, he raced to a 3–0 lead, applying early pressure with crisp break-and-runs and airtight positional play. But Kaçi, known for his composure under fire, found his rhythm in the fourth rack with a slick escape on the 2-ball, sparking his first rally of the night.

Still, Gorst wasn’t letting up. A sensational jump shot on the 2-ball in rack 8, followed by another on the 3-ball in rack 13, highlighted his growing dominance as he pushed the lead to 8–4. Kaçi responded with grit, taking back-to-back racks before an unfortunate 9-ball error in rack 15 allowed Gorst to stretch his lead again with a brilliant 3-9 carom.

Even as Gorst moved ahead 13–9, the battle was far from over.

Kaçi, channelling his signature resilience, capitalised on a missed 1-ball from Gorst and launched into a breathtaking comeback. Rack after rack, he chipped away at the deficit, including a jaw-dropping two-rail kick combo on the 2–9 in rack 26 — the shot of the tournament — to tie things up at 13–13. Then, with momentum fully behind him, Kaçi cleaned up another rack to reach the hill first at 14–13.

But in a cruel twist of fate, his break came up dry.

Gorst stepped to the table and cleared with precision to force the hill-hill decider — the 29th rack in an already legendary final.

What followed was a masterclass in tension. A nervy exchange of safeties on the opening balls had both players walking a tightrope, until disaster struck for Kaçi: a scratch that handed Gorst ball in hand. From there, the reigning champion composed himself, mapped the table with surgical precision, and cleared one final time.

Fedor Gorst 15–14 Eklent Kaçi. A marathon match. A moment in history.

With this victory, Gorst becomes a two-time World Pool Champion at just 24 years old, the youngest ever to do so — and with it, he ascends to world number one on the World Nineball Tour.

A final for the ages. A champion for a generation. And a night Jeddah — and the pool world — won’t soon forget.