42 years after his first appearance in the World Championships in 1982. Paul Lim advanced to the first world final. The 70-year-old Singaporean also did it in style, winning 5-0 against American Jason Brandon. With the year 2024 WDF World Championships on the line at Lakethe living legend will face Irishman Shane McGuirk.
Just how well Lim played on Saturday night was evidenced by the fact that he only lost three legs in the entire semi-final. “I felt in my heart that I was prepared for this. I really am and I just want to do well,” Lim later recalled in his post-match interview. “I always say that in every tournament you just want to do well, and if you do well and get beaten by a better opponent, it’s bad luck. It is what it is and we accept it because I have been going through this for 40 years! I guess there’s some luck on my side, but you make your own luck.”
As already mentioned, Lim will face McGuirk in the final, who averaged a plus-90 throughout the tournament. “I’m very happy to be in the final because I want to go out with a bang!” Lima preview. “I know I have a difficult opponent. I just want to go there and play darts, that’s all, and hopefully it will entertain the crowd.”
Paul Lim on stage at Lakeside Country Club
Lim made his debut at the BDO World Championships back in 1982; in 1990 he threw the only nine-nine in history at Lakeside. Thanks to advancing to the final, the audience favorite once again entered folklore. “I felt the love from the audience and it really inspires me. Support is very important, and I have fans there who just cheer me on every time I get to the top,” he says. “My darts career started at Lakeside so I have to thank the BDO and Olly Croft.”
At 70, Lim realizes that time is not on his side; earlier this week he broke the news that this World Championships will likely be his last. “My main goal now is to get the enthusiasm of darts players in Asia. I hope that more young people will take up darts and that we will have some top Asian players in the future.”
