But this Easter, between 20th and 24th April, Hansen returns home to Denmark, and back to his gaming roots, as he joins more than 300 players battling it out in the 2008 Nordic Open – one of the leading international backgammon tournaments, and the second leg of World Series of Backgammon® Season II.
 
“Backgammon’s in my blood,” explains Hansen. “Though I’ve had great success on the poker table and remain committed to the game, I often feel that the challenge that exists in backgammon is greater. It’s a more intense ‘thinking’ game than poker and the head to head nature of competition is very gladiatorial. That’s why I’m coming home to Denmark to compete in the Nordic Open, part of the WSOB.”
 
Hansen is not alone in his love of the game; backgammon is thought to be the world’s oldest board game, and though its mass popularity has waxed and waned over history, the fact that the WSOB is now televised on Eurosport and will be distributed worldwide via sports broadcasting giant ESPN International marks a significant revival in the fortunes of the game. Many, including Hansen, see backgammon as a pretender to poker’s throne.
 
“The fact that the field for the Nordic Open is much bigger than for many years, is down to the power of television and revival in the game. In addition to competing in the tournament, I’ll also be commentating on the action” continued Hansen.
 
With a population of just 5 million, Denmark boasts many of the strongest players in the world game. “It’s as if everyone in Denmark plays,” comments John Clark, one of the UK’s best players, who shares the commentators’ microphone with Hansen during the Nordic Open. “This field is strong. But it’s not just a field of awesome Scandinavian fire power; the event has attracted some of the very best players from around the world; characters like Francois Tardieu (regarded as World No 1) from France, Falafel from Israel and Mochizuki from Japan will rub shoulders with the rest of the field,” Clark continued.
 
About the Nordic Open event

The Nordic Open takes place at the Marienlyst Hotel and Casino in Helsingor (about 30 minutes outside Copenhagen) from 20th to 24th April 2008
 
Competitors will battle it out for a purse of more than 100,000 Euros, a €10.000 seat in the WSOB Championship and the second of four Gold Cubes awarded on this season’s tour

17 hours of programming is being produced around Season II with 4 hours from Nordic Open which will be broadcast across Europe on Eurosport. The shows is also being distributed to broadcasters worldwide by ESPN International and will be available on internet television service, Joost.com

Match action from the latter stages will be captured, with two quarter finals, both Semi finals and the final.

Daily News feeds and updates from Nordic Open will be available on
WorldSeriesOfBackgammon.com and issued direct to the media on request

About WSOB

The Nordic Open 2008 is part of World Series of Backgammon 2007-08, a televised tour comprising three major tournaments and a final table style finale:

• UK Masters won by Englishman John HURST from Casino at the Empire, London took place on15-18 November 2007
• Nordic Open from Marienlyst Hotel and Casino, 20-24 March 08
  see www.nordicopen.dk
• Riviera Cup from the Palm Beach Casino, Cannes, 15-20 July 08 see www.PartoucheGammon.com  

With several hundred thousand Euros expected in prize money, the winner of each WSOB event also receives the WSOB Gold Cube™ and a €10.000 Seat to the finale, the WSOB Championship™

WSOB Championship rewards the top eight live players, as well as winners of Super Satellites on the net. Eight €10,000 seats will be played-out on the net with Official Online Partners, PartoucheGammon.com and Play65.com. Together, 16 players will shoot it out in three point matches at the Palm Beach Casino, in Cannes this July 2008 for the fourth Gold Cube and a prize purse of €160,000 in prize money (with the winner collecting €100,000).

WSOB Championship from the Palm Beach Casino, Cannes, 21 Jul 08 see www.worldseriesofbackgammon.com


About the TV Action

World Series of Backgammon (WSOB) captures the match action, jeopardy and background around the world’s leading backgammon events broadcasting across Europe on Eurosport 1 and 2. WSOB is distributed worldwide by ESPN International.

Season I launched in 2006 covering the Riviera and Nations Cup from the Palm Beach Casino, Cannes.
 
The TV presentation team comprises:

• Host Jessie Cantrell, also anchor of the popular broadband show Black20 News, produced from New York
  
• John Clark, an acclaimed backgammon player and commentator who has been ranked the UK’s #1 player for much of the past decade.
  
• Gus Hansen, a professional poker and backgammon player, widely regarded as the best dual discipline player in the world and winner of the 2007 Aussie Millions and 4-time WPT title winner.

For more information including images from the event, please contact World Series of Backgammon Enterprises director Andy Bell on +44 (0)7961 102207 or ab@moviepartmedia.com