BACK IN THE DAY WITH: Francis Hoenselaar: Still the only Dutch women's darts world champion

In this section we regularly go back in time with a particular darter. Today we do so with Dutchwoman, Francis Hoenselaar.

Hoenselaar was born on Jan. 15, 1965, in Rotterdam. In the 1990s, she was one of the dominant players on the women's circuit with numerous wins at the Dutch Open, Belgium Open, French Open, England Open and so on.

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Hoenselaar recorded her first major victory in 1999 when she won over Trina Gulliver in the final of the Winmau World Masters. In 1996, 2004 and 2010 she won the WDF Europe Cup and also the WDF Europe Cup in 2001. So expectations were high when a first BDO Women's World Championship was finally organized in 2001. There were only four ladies competing then and Hoenselaar lost somewhat surprisingly in the semifinals 2-1 to England's Mandy Solomons.

However, "The Dutch Crown," as her nickname went, was determined to do better a year later and so she did. With eight ladies competing this time, Hoenselaar defeated Stacy Bromberg 2-0 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals she was too strong for Sandra Greatbatch with 2-1, so a final against reigning world champion Gulliver followed. Both ladies gave each other very little, but in the end it was still Gulliver who won 2-1 to extend her world title.

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In subsequent years, Hoenselaar remained one of the best players on the women's tour, winning the Winmau World Masters twice (2006 and 2008). At the World Championships, however, she always fell short, with another four defeats in the final, each time against her old foe Gulliver.

In 2009 Hoenselaar again made it to the World Championships. After victories against Carla Molema and Rilana Erades, Gulliver was awaiting in the final once more. This time it was the Dutch player who won 2-1 to finally win her first world title.

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A year later, Hoenselaar was there for the last time at the BDO World Championship. At Lakeside Country Club, she went down 2-0 against Gulliver in the quarterfinals. A few years later, at the age of 49, she announced her retirement.

Due to various injuries, she could no longer reach her best level and that forced Hoenselaar to make this decision. She still remains to this day the only Dutch world champion in women's darts.

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