BADEN - They did not suffer a financial loss; yet, they could not find a head-sponsor and only half of the Chinese players showed up. They are very satisfied with the organization of the European mahjong championship 2009, yet they never want to do this a second time. They did not instruct anybody to play more friendly, yet the way of playing at the tables was very kind and relaxed. It has been a wonderful OEMC at Baden, near Vienna. Say Otto Myslivec and Norbert Tschinkel of the OEMC 2009 Organizing Committee.

Tired but satisfied?
Otto Myslivec: “Very satisfied. All the people who participated at Baden, have enjoyed it very much. It has been a tournament people will still talk about for years. We received only positive feedback. We have done something for our state, our country. And we have shown the mahjong world that the Austrians are not playing by the rule book alone. We want to spread mahjong.”

You really mean that: something for your country?
Norbert Tschinkel: “Yes. We also wanted to promote Baden. Just think of the trotting race we have organized. That is a typical regional activity. Before the race, some people were not so happy with this part of the program. Yet, it was a great success.”
Otto: “24 mahjong players could take a seat in the carts, and they absolutely loved it. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for them.
“Then there was the Spanferkel: a sucking pig, grilled on an open fire. Also very Austrian!”
Norbert: “Music from the region Styria [Steiermark]. And not from Tirol, as Sjef Strik wrote in his Baden Diary on your website. It was played during the opening ceremony, and it came back at the closing party.”

What about the money? You did get only some local sponsors, and half of the Chinese team did not show up.
No problem, says Otto Myslivec. “We calculated with a ‘black zero’. The Chinese did pay, also for those who did not show up. That means that the subscription fee of the substitute players we had to ask to take their places, was paid by the Chinese.” They were very glad with the financial outcome. If the OEMC 2009 would have suffered a loss, the organizers would have had to pay it from their own pockets.

Before the tournament, many players were afraid of the strict Austrian way of playing by the regulations book. Yet, after the OEMC, no dissonance was heard. Were special instructions given in order to get a more friendly way of playing?
Norbert Tschinkel shakes his head. “The referees came from many countries”, he says. “The way they are applied, was the responsibility of head referee Tina Christensen and her team.” Otto confirms: “We did not give any instructions.” He suspects that it is the other way around: the players tend to play less throat-cutting, and they now accept rules which were considered controversial some time ago. Norbert gives an example he witnessed during the tournament in Hungary. “Yesterday, a player forgot to pick up the winning tile after a ‘hu’. It was no problem, he could take it after all.” Otto: “Someone else took a tile from the wrong end of the wall. No problem either.”
Norbert and Otto remain distant of the ‘old Austrian’ way: “The players are responsible for what happens at the tables. But of course, they can call the referee as they want to.”