Raymond van Barneveld can prepare for his 34th appearance at the World Darts Championship. The five-time world champion secured his place on Thursday after a difficult qualifying campaign. The 59-year-old from The Hague has now achieved a major goal. Vincent van der Voort had little faith in a successful outcome a few months ago, but saw his former colleague rediscover his form at just the right time.

Van Barneveld opened the season’s final Players Championship event with a convincing 6-2 win over Jimmy van Schie. His direct rivals had all been knocked out in the first round, so the result was enough to confirm his place at the World Championship in Alexandra Palace.

That brought an end to a tense period for the Dutchman, who had spent the past few months fighting to hold on to his place in the world championship rankings.

Van der Voort saw Van Barneveld’s chances fade

For a long time, Vincent van der Voort had little faith in Van Barneveld’s chances of reaching the World Championship. However, the former professional player saw the man from The Hague move closer to qualification with each of the final tournaments.

“A few months ago, I said: this will be very difficult; he won’t make it. But in the last few weeks, he came really close. That’s when I started to believe it could happen. He managed to turn things around very well at the end. That’s a great achievement,” Van der Voort told Sportnieuws.nl.

Van der Voort believes qualification means a great deal to Van Barneveld, who had made reaching the World Championship one of his main goals.

“It must be a huge relief,” Van der Voort says. “I speak to him regularly, and he was really focused on qualifying for the World Championship. This is a fantastic boost for him. This is what it’s all about for him.”

Raymond van Barneveld secured his place at the World Darts Championship at the last moment

The former professional player believes the manner in which Van Barneveld had to qualify added considerable pressure. Given his impressive record and standing in the sport, expectations for the man from The Hague remain high.

“He has won so much in his career. This should really be a formality for him. A player of his stature should be at the World Championship. Having to qualify this way this year was frustrating for him.”

Adjusted throw offers hope ahead of the World Championship

With qualification secured, Van Barneveld can now focus fully on the World Darts Championship, which begins on Friday 11 December. Van der Voort finds it difficult to assess his compatriot’s chances, partly because of his results at major televised events in recent years.

“He hasn’t achieved much at the World Championship or other televised tournaments in recent years. His last major result at a televised event was the 2022 Grand Slam of Darts. It’s difficult to assess,” Van der Voort says.

Still, the former professional player sees reasons to approach the upcoming World Championship with confidence. Van Barneveld has worked on his technique, he says, and is beginning to look more like the player he was in the past.

“He has adjusted his throw slightly, so he’s throwing more like he used to. If he keeps training this way, who knows how far he can go? He has the experience, and he should be able to handle one match a day. But they also need to get him in the right frame of mind. Things don’t always go the way you want,” Van der Voort concludes.