EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW | "What comes out in the end is what counts" - Marcel Walpen wants to carry form into NEXT GEN

The first two tournaments of the NEXT GEN Circuit 2025 will be held on Saturday, February 1 and Sunday, February 2. Marcel Walpen is one of the few Swiss players who will be taking part.

Cello, Walpen's nickname, caught the attention of PDC darts fans when he competed for Switzerland alongside Stefan Bellmont in the 2023 World Cup of Darts. At the Swiss Darts Trophy 2024, the first European Tour tournament to be held in Switzerland, the Swiss player once again took to the PDC stage. Here he met Nathan Aspinall in his first round match. Even though Walpen lost 3-6 in this match, he looked back on this encounter with shining eyes in an interview with Dartsnews.de.

"It all started backstage," he let us know. "We came to the hall first, then Nathan and Michael Smith joined us. We greeted each other there. He told me afterwards that he'd been watching it (the Host Nation Qualifier for the Swiss Darts Trophy; editor's note) too. He wanted to know who his opponent would be. He saw the 95 average, so a strong player. I had fun playing against him."

Nevertheless, the 3-6 defeat was unnecessary, as Walpen said. "I let my emotions get the better of me too much. I knew I could have done much better if I had concentrated and played my game. But the atmosphere was so fantastic! It was brilliant, and in front of a home crowd in Switzerland."

"I got too carried away with the atmosphere," he continued. "I wasn't nervous, I was just full of joy that I could be on stage. In hindsight, it annoyed me again that I didn't perform more."

At the Host Nation Qualifier, Walpen had the advantage of already knowing some of the players from the SDC. "I knew players like Andy Bless and Roman Wellinger. I know what they can play, they can play absolute top darts!" Cello praised his darts colleagues. "I knew I had to give my absolute best," he continued.

"It all worked out. I said to myself: 'I have nothing to lose, just play your game'. That's how it turned out. I was really happy (after the win)." In the final round of the qualifier, Walpen faced Manuel Schelbert, whom he defeated 6-2, with Cello benefiting from his experience. "I was able to take a relaxed approach to the match. The boy was nervous, I quickly realized that. I had an easy game," admitted the three-time Swiss champion unabashedly.

Nevertheless, it is not a matter of course for Cello that he was able to assert himself at the Host Nation Qualifier alongside Bruno Stöckli, Roger Hertig and Alex Fehlmann. "That I managed to do that (qualify for the Swiss Darts Trophy)! I was already the favorite, but we saw it: Stefan Bellmont was also the heavy favorite to make it to the stage. He was eliminated in the first round (losing 3-6 to Felix Schiertz). So much can happen, but it worked for me, I pulled it off."

Even though Walpen didn't manage to get a tour card despite a good start to Q-School 2025, he will stay on the ball and take advantage of the tournaments that come his way. These include the SDC Tour tournaments, the Challenge Tour and NEXT GEN in particular. Nevertheless, he stated that he has not set himself any goals for 2025. "I'm taking it step by step. I don't set myself any goals. I realized it last year. This is now my third year traveling internationally - I'll take what comes."

A strategy to keep the level of disappointment low. "Last year at the NEXT GEN, I said I could make the top 10. I didn't manage that (Walpen finished in 22nd place in the NEXT GEN Order of Merit). I was extremely disappointed. That also set me back a bit from the game. Today I tell myself I'm going step by step. Every tournament, every game. I focus on each game anew and what comes out at the end is what counts."

The NEXT GEN and SDC Tour tournaments will take place at the same time next weekend. Although Walpen prefers the NEXT GEN, he praises the Swiss Darts Corporation. In addition, Walpen's performance has clearly improved since he started playing on the SDC Tour. "The more I can play, the better I get in," analyzed the three-time Swiss champion. "I really am a tournament player. Practicing at home, on my own, is almost nothing for me. I also really enjoy practising with Belli, who now has his own darts club. That takes me further. That and playing lots of tournaments."

How did Walpen find out about the SDC? "I once saw on the internet that tournaments were being held there, and it was still small then," says Cello, thinking back to his beginnings at the Swiss Darts Corporation. "That's when I said: I've switched to steel, now I'll give steel darts a try. Before that I played a lot of soft darts. I then went to the SDC tournaments and won one after the other."

"The field (at the SDC) is getting stronger and stronger. Also because many Germans (such as Lukas Dallmann, Thomas Köhnlein and Jochen Graudenz) are coming here. Lukas Dallmann has made huge progress. If you want to win a tournament, you have to go through him. There are so many good dart players here at the moment, where a lot is possible."

Respectful words about a young German who is just 20 years old? "Of course, when you play against a young darts player, nerves play a part. That's our advantage. But otherwise - it's getting better and better," explained Walpen.

He concluded by expressing his hope that the SDC will continue to develop as it has done so far: "I also hope that the SDC will take more steps forward and not just stand still because that's just how it works now."