Wu Jiaqing (; born February 9, 1989) is a
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
ese-born Chinese professional
pool
Pool may refer to:
Water pool
* Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming
* Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings
* Tide pool, a rocky po ...
player. He is nicknamed the ''Taishan Shentong'' ("Little Genius from
Taishan __NOTOC__
Taishan may refer to:
*Mount Tai or Taishan (), Shandong, China
* Taishan District, Tai'an (), named after the Mount Tai, a district in Tai'an, Shandong, China
*Taishan, Guangdong (), a county-level city of Jiangmen, Guangdong, China
** G ...
"). Since 2011, Wu switched from representing Chinese Taipei to representing the country of China. Previously known as Wu Chia-ching, the spelling of his name was changed upon moving to mainland China.
Career
Raised by his grandmother from the age of 2, Wu began playing
eight-ball
Eight-ball (also spelled 8-ball or eightball, and sometimes called solids and stripes, spots and stripes or rarely highs and lows) is a discipline of pool played on a billiard table with six pockets, cue sticks, and sixteen billiard balls (a ...
at the age of 10 at his family-run
pool hall
A billiard, pool or snooker hall (or parlour, room or club; sometimes compounded as poolhall, poolroom, etc.) is a place where people get together for playing cue sports such as pool, snooker or carom billiards. Such establishments commonly ser ...
. When he became serious about pool, his grandmother would shuttle him from one competition venue to another on her
scooter.
In 2005, after only six years of playing, Wu became the youngest player (at 16 years, 5 months old) ever to win the
WPA World Nine-ball Championship
The WPA World Nine-ball Championship is an annual professional nine-ball pool tournament contested since 1990. The championship is sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) and principally sponsored and organised by Matchroom Spor ...
. The next year, he was the top seed of the event, but lost in the quarter-final round to eventual winner
Ronato Alcano
Ronato (Ronnie) Alcano (pronounced al-kah-no) (born 27 July 1972 in Calamba City, Laguna, Philippines), is a Filipino professional pool player, nicknamed "Ronnie ''Calamba''" and "the Volcano". He won both the 2006 WPA World Nine-ball Champion ...
of the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
.
Wu also won the 2005
WPA World Eight-ball Championship
The WPA World Eight-ball Championship is a professional eight-ball pool tournament sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), initially contested from 2004 to 2012 in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates.
After not being held for several ...
. Previously, he was the runner-up at the 2004
Juniors Nine-ball World Championship.
He placed second to
Darren Appleton
Darren Appleton (born 8 February 1976) is an English pool player, best known for playing Eight-ball, Nine-ball and Ten-ball pool. in the inaugural
WPA World Ten-ball Championship
The WPA World Ten-ball Championship is a professional ten-ball pool tournament sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA). The event was first held in 2008 in the Philippines, followed by playings there in 2009 and 2011. After not bei ...
in 2008, claiming the runner-up prize of
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
40,000
[dailytimes.com.pk](_blank)
, "Britain's Appleton Wins World 10-Ball Championship" In the semi-finals of the event, Wu had defeated
Demosthenes Pulpul
Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowe ...
of the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, 11–8, using a borrowed
cue stick
A cue stick (or simply cue, more specifically billiards cue, pool cue, or snooker cue) is an item of sporting equipment essential to the games of pool, snooker and carom billiards. It is used to strike a ball, usually the . Cues are tapered stick ...
.
[sports.inquirer.net](_blank)
, "Pulpul's Magical Run Ends"[abs-cbnnews.com](_blank)
, "Pulpul Fails to Reach World 10-Ball Finals"
, "Dynamite Blasts World 10-Ball Championship"
In 2011 Wu applied for and obtained citizenship of the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. Ostensibly, Wu did this, to allow himself to compete in more international events. Wu stated the decision was made for sporting reasons and should not be regarded in a political light.
As of April, 2011, Wu has not given up his
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
nationality.
[China Post, 26 April 2011 http://www.china-defense-mashup.com/wu-still-obliged-to-serve-in-taiwan-military.html ] Republic of China Deputy
Minister of the Interior
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...
Lin Tzu-ling
Lin Tzu-ling () is a Taiwanese politician. She currently serves as the Administrative Deputy Minister of the Ministry of the Interior.
ROC Interior Ministry
In 2000, Lin was appointed leader of the Civil Affairs Department. By 2002, she had ...
stated that "An ROC national who wants to give up his or her citizenship must go through certain procedures. So far, I do not think we have received any application from him (Wu) to do so". The Minister noted that “As long as he is still an ROC national, he will be drafted into the military if he comes back to Taiwan.” The Republic of China's
stipulates that both the “Taiwan Area” and the “Mainland Area” are parts of the ROC, and the “Mainland Area” is legally defined as “ROC territory outside of the Taiwan Area.”
In addition, the law does not recognize PRC citizenship and defines PRC citizens as “people of the Mainland Area” who “have household registration in the Mainland Area.” Article 9-1 of the same law prohibits “the people of the Taiwan Area” from obtaining household registration in “the Mainland Area,” those who break the law are banned from voting and serving in office, while their household registration in “the Taiwan Area” is annulled.
Career achievements
* 2021
Chinese Pool Elite Tour Event 3
* 2019
China Open 9-Ball Championship
* 2018
World Cup of Pool
The World Cup of Pool is an annual international single-elimination tournament for doubles teams in nine-ball pool competition. The event has been dominated by the Philippines and China, with both nations winning the event on three occasions.
Hi ...
- with (
Liu Haitao)
* 2016
China Open 9-Ball Championship
* 2015 CBSA Hongze 9-Ball Open
* 2008 Quezon City Invasion
* 2007
All Japan Championship
* 2006 Mezz Crowd Nine Cup Doubles
* 2005 Billiards Digest Players of the Year
* 2005
WPA World Eight-ball Championship
The WPA World Eight-ball Championship is a professional eight-ball pool tournament sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), initially contested from 2004 to 2012 in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates.
After not being held for several ...
* 2005 Mezz Crowd Nine Cup
* 2005
WPA World Nine-ball Championship
The WPA World Nine-ball Championship is an annual professional nine-ball pool tournament contested since 1990. The championship is sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) and principally sponsored and organised by Matchroom Spor ...
References
External links
AZBilliards.com profile Worldpoolchampionship.com profileGuinness9balltour.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu, Jia-qing
1989 births
Living people
Taiwanese pool players
World champions in pool
Sportspeople from New Taipei
Chinese pool players
Chinese people of Taiwanese descent
Cue sports players at the 2006 Asian Games
WPA World Nine-ball Champions
WPA World Eight-ball Champions
Asian Games competitors for China