For the first time in over a decade, and possibly ever, New Zealand has finished the preliminary rounds of the World Champs in first place. The “break” is below (wins, then judges)
1. New Zealand 8-23
2 South Africa 8-22
3 England 8 21
4 Canada 7 21
5 Pakistan 7 19
6 Israel 7 19
7 Singapore 6 19
8 Australia 6 18
9 Ireland 6 18
10 Greece 6 18
11 Slovenia 6 16
12 Scotland 5 15
13 South Korea 5 15
14 Wales 5 14
15 Hong Kong 5 14
16 Netherlands 5 14
I’ve been asked to provide information about how the octo-finals work. The first ranked team now debates the 16th ranked team. The 2nd ranked team debates the 15th, and so on. Each team that loses is knocked out of the competition. Quarter-finals follow the octos, then two semi-finals, then the Grand Final. If New Zealand wins its octo then they will debate either Australia or Ireland in the quarterfinal (8th team vs 9th team).