Caruana Curran elected EBSA vice-chairman

Joe Caruana Curran, the president of the Malta Billiards and Snooker Association (MBSA), has been elected vice-president of the European Billiards and Snooker Association (EBSA) for a two-year term.

Caruana Curran's nomination was unanimously approved by the 31 delegates who attended the annual general meeting in Belgium on Friday. The chairman of the EBSA Committee is Jim Leacy, from Ireland.

Contacted by The Times yesterday, Caruana Curran, who for many years was involved in local football as president of Valletta, expressed satisfaction at his new appointment.

"I'm honoured to be the new vice-chairman of the EBSA," Caruana Curran said.

"After attending the IBSF annual general meeting in November, I was encouraged by other delegates to take up a more active role on the international scene.

"Given that the other three top officials on the EBSA Committee come from Ireland and France, I'd like to think that my appointment is testament to Malta's status as a top snooker country. This also applies to our players who are among the most respected in Europe."

Caruana Curran has been handed the responsibility of boosting the image of snooker from a marketing point-of-view.

"The AGM was followed by a board meeting during which I was tasked with promoting snooker in European countries where the game is not very popular," Caruana Curran said. "I have also been instructed to oversee the design and construction of the new EBSA website and to find new corporate sponsors for the top events organised by the association."

It was also announced at the weekend that Malta has been chosen to host the 2010 European Team Snooker and Under-19 Championships. The two competitions will take place between March 24 and April 1 at the New Dolmen Hotel.

The 2010 European Championships will be held in Bucharest.

Hogan wins title

Meanwhile, David Hogan, of Ireland, was crowned European champion last weekend after a 7-4 win over fellow countryman Mario Fernandez in the final.

Malta's Tony Drago made the highest break of the tournament with a run of 139 in the group stages.