"We all know he deserves to win this game" - Gian van Veen shows class in consoling Van der Velde following dramatic World Youth final

Gian van Veen has secured himself a place in darting history. The 22-year-old is the first Dutchman to win the PDC Youth World Championship. Van Veen defeated his compatriot Jurjen van der Velde 6-5 on Sunday night in a dramatic final.

Last year Van Veen lost in the final to Luke Littler, but this year the Dutchman won. Although he had some luck in the final, his opponent missed six match darts. "To be the first Dutch winner is a massive milestone for me," said Van Veen afterwards. "I stole it today. Jurjen played fantastic darts and he kept me under pressure for the whole match. He deserved to be the winner today - I feel for him, but he missed his chances and I took mine."

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After Van der Velde broke down in tears post-match, Van Veen showed his class, consoling his heartbroken opponent instead of celebrating overtly. As mentioned, given Van Veen lost out last year, he knows what it feels like and can emphasise with his compatriot. "Last year I missed one dart to go 5-5 on a 90 finish, so that was definitely on my mind," he admits. "We all know he deserves to win this match, but he missed his chances and I took mine."

Gian van Veen proudly poses with his trophy as winner of the Youth World Cup

Never before has anyone been both youth and senior world champion at the same time. "Luke Littler came close last year," laughs Van Veen when this fact is presented to him. "Hopefully I can come as close as he did, and maybe go one step further. It's a big dream. Of course it's a big ask, but who knows, this could be the year... If Luke can do it, why can't I? But I think Luke is someone else. He's something special and I just need to focus on myself."

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