More than 30 years after making darts history, 70-year-old 'Singapore Slinger' Paul Lim continues to achieve new feats
SINGAPORE: The year was 1990. And in about a minute at Lakeside Country Club in Surrey, England, Paul Lim accomplished the extraordinary.
It is a feat which has lived in the record books of darting history – the first player to hit a perfect nine-dart finish at a world championship.
The accomplishment landed him £52,000 – about US$92,600 then – and while he was eliminated in the quarter-finals, Lim won the hearts of darts fans worldwide.
Fast forward 34 years, and Lim was back where it all started.
His features were no longer as youthful, his vision was no longer as sharp, and his polo t-shirt bore the flag of a different country. But it's the same man – the "Singapore Slinger".
On Dec 8, Lim lost in the final of the WDF World Darts Championship after a fairytale run. Ireland's Shane McGuirk, 29, beat the 70-year-old Singaporean 6-3 at Lakeside.
FROM LOCAL PUB TO WORLD STAGE
In the past decades, Lim has travelled the globe, but his story started in England.
After he completed his National Service in the 1970s, Lim packed his bags and headed to London.
"I went through different jobs just to survive," he told CNA. "Eventually I was able to hunt down a hotel because I wanted to be a chef."
With the help of the hotel's head chef, Lim enrolled himself in a cookery course.
"Every morning I would go to college ... After I finished college, I would go back to the hotel and work from afternoon to dinner service, which was about 10 to 11 at night," he recalled.
It was at a local pub where he was first introduced to darts by other chefs.
They competed every Friday night, with everybody chipping in with 50 pence. The winner's prize? A bottle of whisky.
Playing a number of sports as a youngster meant that Lim had good hand-eye coordination, and he was quickly drawn to the dartboard.
"I found that darts is a very interesting sport ... I straightaway bought a dartboard and put it in the apartment," he said.
"And I could practice whether it was snowing, whether it was raining, whenever I wanted. I spent a lot of time doing that, and I eventually just became good."
A number of years later, Lim returned to Singapore where he worked as a chef at the now-defunct Marco Polo hotel. During his time back, he competed in his first Singapore Open and won the tournament.
But the opportunity to further his career as a head chef of a French restaurant came knocking and Lim moved to Papua New Guinea.
A CHANGE OF SCENERY
Lim enjoyed the change in environment.
"It was different but I've always loved the sea, I loved fishing and Papua New Guinea is a great place for that," he said.
Lim represented Papua New Guinea in his first international competition, the Asia-Pacific Cup, where he won his event.
It was during that tournament that he met American darts player Jerry Umberger, who recommended that Lim move to the United States and compete in the professional darts circuit.
"He said that in the USA we have the darts circuit where there is prize money. Every week there's a tournament somewhere in America and you just have to find where to go," recalled Lim.
Lim first moved to Boston. But with the weather proving too cold, he settled down in California and worked at a pub restaurant as a chef.
"It was in a darting environment so it really kind of suited me very well ... I worked from Monday to Thursday and on Friday I would fly to tournaments," he said.
"I didn't know how I was going to be doing (on the circuit) ... so I had to have a job to sustain my travel and pay my rent and things like that."
As Lim made a name for himself on the circuit, sponsors eventually came on board.
ONE STEP AT A TIME
Prior to that historic showing at the 1990 World Championship, Lim had never made it past the early stages of the competition.
But that year, everything changed.
"It was a blast. I can't describe it. Until this very day, I still get goosebumps thinking about it," said Lim, who represented the United States at that tournament.
He remembers his achievement vividly to this day.
The money he earned, which far exceeded the amount awarded to the tournament winner, also came in handy for Lim, who used it to start his own darts business.
Over the years, he has continued to compete in major tournaments while working as a consultant for an electronic darts company.
But Lakeside Country Club has always had a special place in his heart.
"I was excited to be back there again after so many years," he said, this time wearing the Singapore flag.
Going into this year's WDF World Darts Championship, Lim's goal was to take it one game at a time – and he saw off challenge after challenge.
"What's going to happen, you never know. But I go with the intent that I want to do well," he said.
Lim first beat the Netherlands' Moreno Blom 2-0, then Hong Kong's Leung Kai Fan 3-2.
The match against Leung, a close friend of Lim's, was particularly tough, he said. Prior to the tournament draw, Leung had invited Lim to stay at his home and prepare for the event.
"He's the guy I spent time with and he's the guy who looked after me ... It's always difficult," added Lim.
Lim's fairytale run continued, as he beat Scotland's Gary Stone 3-2, Dutchman Jarno Bottenberg 4-3 and American Jason Brandon 5-0.
"I always think one step at a time. If I win one step at a time, I'll be in the final," said Lim.
But he fell short in his bid to become the oldest darts world champion on Dec 8. McGuirk took home the winner's cheque of £50,000 (US$63,500), while Lim collected £16,000.
"I did prove a point that age is not really a vital thing," he said.
POWERED BY PASSION
Things have changed over the years, admitted Lim. These days, he no longer has as much stamina to compete in a full-day tournament.
"Stamina is very important," he said. "(A) 70-year-old gets tired a lot easier. The funny thing is I have gone through this (sport) for over 40 years now and I've never felt that I could get tired. Until maybe when I was about 68."
Earlier this year, he switched to using glasses after experiencing blurred vision.
"It was a struggle to get used to it," Lim admitted. "I kept practising with my glasses on at home until it became secondary."
While physical problems can be an issue when it comes to darts, having a strong mindset is key, he stressed.
"A lot of people can be great dart players but if your mindset is weak, you're going (to be) rattled ... and you're going to do everything differently."
He wants to continue competing for as long as he can.
"At the back of my mind, I know one day it will stop. But as of right now, I just don't feel that day is coming," said Lim.
What helps is that Lim enjoys not just the competitive nature of darts but interacting with supporters.
"In every sport, (it is) for yourself but you've got to think about the fans out there and the people that support you. It gives me a lot of joy, it really does," he added.
"(People ask me): 'How come you're always smiling?' It's supposed to be a happy moment. I'm able to play a sport that I love, and I'm able to make a living out of it. What else would you want to ask for?"
When he decides to call it a day competitively, Lim intends to keep promoting the sport.
"I want to bring joy to other people (through) darts and I think it's good for them," he said.
"I'm living proof. I'm 70 years old right now, I can still move around and I'm happy doing it ... My passion actually makes me feel younger."
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