After a breakthrough year on the European Tour,
Martin Schindler aims to crown his memorable season with his first televised title on home soil at the European Darts Championship. 'The Wall' is making history anyway, as he is the first German to top the placing list at a PDC major.
Schindler managed to earn the most prize money at the thirteen Euro Tour tournaments in 2024 this season. Schindler himself managed to win two of these titles. “I’m very proud of the year I’ve had on the European Tour,” insisted Schindler. "It’s been a good year for me and being the number one [seed] is a great feeling.
“The European Tour has always been a very big step for players; if they handled the European Tour they would perform even better in major tournaments.
“I always put pressure on myself, but I think it’s a good thing for me to have pressure, and because of that pressure I believe I can be the best version of myself.”
Schindler begins his
European Championship participation against Dirk van Duijvenbode. In his four previous European Championship appearances, Schindler never managed to win a match and he hopes to end that streak on Thursday.
“The support I get in Germany is always great,” admitted Schindler. "Unfortunately I haven’t managed to win a game at the European Championship yet, but I’m really looking forward to playing in front of my home crowd again. Dirk is an emotional player, like I am as well. I am expecting him to perform well, but I have to look at myself and play my game.
“You cannot take anything for granted and if I don’t play well, I’m probably going to lose this game.”
Schindler is on the verge of breaking into the world's top 20 for the first time in his career, and a strong performance at the Westfalenhalle could put him in the top 16.
“I think I have managed to deal with situations so much better than I have in the past,” claimed Schindler. "I always used to have trouble playing in front of crowds; four or five years ago I was not myself on the stage, but I figured, what’s the worst that can happen?
“I think I have really matured as a human. I am a father now; I have other responsibilities. I have really developed in my life and I’m trying to use the experiences I’ve had in my personal life - especially with my daughter – to help me grow.
“I think the most important thing is to be patient; wait for your chance and always believe in yourself.”