Darts fans will be asking the same questions about Raymond van Barneveld’s hair when the five-time world champion begins his Alexandra Palace campaign
Darts fans will be asking the same questions about Raymond van Barneveld’s hair when the five-time world champion begins his Alexandra Palace campaign Darts fans will be asking the same questions about Raymond van Barneveld’s hair when the five-time world champion begins his Alexandra Palace campaign
Raymond van Barneveld’s Barnet has got fans talking as much as his darts over the last couple of years.
The Dutch legend begins his latest World Championship campaign on a ‘Super Saturday’ of action at Alexandra Palace. While Luke Littler’s tournament opener against Ryan Meikle tops the bill, Van Barneveld will also attract plenty of interest as he begins his campaign in the second round.
That interest extends to his bonce. While the five-time world champion has beaten most of the sport’s biggest names, he has needed extra help against a common enemy of middle-aged men: hair loss.
The 57-year-old turned to a hair transplant studio to fight the problem, and the results have been interesting, to say the least. By his own admission, Van Barneveld has been left looking like a toy figure.
Last year, following his treatment, Barney made light of his new look by posting a picture of himself with a Playmobil toy. He wrote: “Always been a big fan of @playmobil with my ‘Playmobil Hair’. Thought I’d say it before someone else does!”
To call Van Barneveld’s treatment a hair transplant would be slightly wide of the mark. He used a company called Tranchair, who actually tattooed stubble onto Van Barneveld’s head.
The company explain: “Raymond van Barneveld opted for the so-called MHP hair pigmentation treatment in our clinic. So actually it is not correct when we say ‘hair transplantation’, because MHP is a different type of treatment.
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“With this technique we tattoo stubble on the scalp. This way you create a shaven look, as it were. This treatment is perfect for anyone who has short shaved hair and where baldness has already progressed.
“With this innovative MHP technique – also called stubble tattoo – small stubbles are imitated so that it appears as if the head has been shaved. The result looks very natural. Our Micro Hair Pigmentation treatments are carried out by Clinic4Hair, a sister company of Transhair that has specialists with years of experience in this field.”
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Image:
Zac Goodwin/PA Wire)
While not the force of old, Van Barneveld is determined to play on amid the influx of brilliant youngsters into the game. Speaking ahead of the 2024/25 Worlds, he admitted: “Sometimes I feel like a 57-year-old, then five minutes later I feel like an 85-year-old. I know in my head that I can beat all the top players. I’ve shown the world that I can.”
Van Barneveld, who could face defending champion Luke Humphries in the third round, accepts winning the whole thing is unlikely, although not impossible. He said: “Normally, I would have said, ‘I’m going to win this’. But after the last two or three years, it’s not realistic to say that.
“I can beat Luke Humphries, I can beat Luke Littler, but it’s another level at the moment. You can’t miss a dart at a double anymore. It’s tough.”
Mirror – Sport
