FORGOTTEN DARTERS: A bad accident ended the career of Erik 'The Sheriff' Clarys

In this column, we regularly remind of 'forgotten darters' from the past. Today it is the turn of the Belgian ace Erik Clarys.

Clarys was born on 18 October 1968 in Deurne, Belgium. In 1995 the Antwerp native made his first international appearance. And how! After victories against Andy Fordham in the quarter-finals and Martin Adams in the semi-finals Clarys actually reached the final of the Winmau World Masters. The first and only Belgian ever to do so. But Clarys did more than that, he also won the tournament by beating reigning BDO world champion Richie Burnett 3-0 in the final. Clarys became the first non-Brit to win the prestigious Winmau World Masters and went home with a cheque worth £7,000.

Two years later Clarys made his debut at the BDO World Championships. In the iconic Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green he narrowly lost in the opening round 3-2 to Englishman Paul Williams. In his next three appearances at the BDO Championships, he also lost in the first round to Kevin Painter, Tony Littleton and Martin Adams respectively.

Clarys, however, gradually managed to secure his place in the BDO elite. He won the Dortmund Open in 1998, 1999 and 2002 and the Swedish Open in 1999. In his own country he crowned himself Belgian Champion several times. Clarys was also known as a real arithmetic prodigy, regularly surprising the cameramen with various special throws.

In his fifth appearance at the BDO World Championships in 2002, Clarys managed to break the negative streak and this time he did get past the opening round thanks to a 3-1 win against German Andree Welge.

In the second round, however, Raymond van Barneveld was too strong, 3-0. A year later, the man nicknamed 'The Sheriff' did even better. After victories in the first two rounds against Tony Eccles (3-1) and Robert Wagner (3-0), Clarys took on Van Barneveld again in the quarter-finals. This time Clarys did manage to take a set, but in the end the Dutchman was too strong again with 5-1.

Clarys then called it a day at the BDO and made the switch to the PDC. He quickly became a regular in the top 32 of the world rankings. In 2004 he reached the third round on his debut at the World Championships thanks to victories against Dan Lauby (3-0) and Mark Walsh (also 3-0). In the third round Ronnie Baxter was too strong, 4-2.

In 2006 Clarys played his last World Championship. After an easy 3-0 win in the opening round against Winston Cadogan, Wayne Mardle put an end to the Belgian's aspirations in the second round with 4-1. Later that year, Clarys was struck by fate when he fell from a ladder while working as a roofer. Clarys broke his arm in several places and despite several operations, he was never able to fully use his right arm again. Clarys tried to use his left arm for a while, but he did not reach his old level and decided to end his career.

After that it was quiet for a long time around Clarys, but the past two years he can be seen regularly on the Belgian television channel VTM, where he provides the co-commentary for the big darts tournaments. In addition, Clarys regularly gives workshops to teach recreational players the tricks of the trade and also trains and coaches potential Belgian talents towards a possible professional career.