Zhaos Historic Snooker Title Sparks Talk of China World Domination

The historic World Snooker Championship title of Zhao Xintong has been set to encourage the game to even greater heights in China and led to predictions. The country could dominate the sport.

The 28-year-old left-handed defeated Mark Williams in the crucible theater of Sheffield on Monday to become the first Asian to win the biggest prize from Snooker.

Zhao celebrated the Chinese flag over his shoulders and back home he is praised as a national hero, his victory that becomes viral on social media in the country.

His 20 -month suspension in 2023 for his small involvement in a gambling scandal, with nine other Chinese snookers also prohibited, is largely forgiven.

“My phone has not stopped calling with phone calls from media and parents,” Zhang Dongtao, head coach, told the WORLD Snooker Academy-Die, which has trained the most China stars, including ZHAO-Vertelde AFP.

Snooker has long been characterized in China by dingy halls full of smoke and considered a pastime for vain drifters, abolished by parents as a waste of time compared to school studies.

But the sport is high since an 18-year-old thing Junhui who was on stage two decades ago and defeated Stephen Hendry to win the China open.

Many professional Chinese players, including Zhao, quote thing as inspiring to record the sport.

The Chinese form ten of the top 32 players in the world and China has more than 300,000 snooker or billiards clubs, an increase of 34,000 in 2005, says Staatsmedia.

An industrial report from Shangqi Consulting appreciated the Billiards market in the country, including Snooker, with 37 billion Yuan ($ 5 billion) in 2023 – and predicted that it could double in the coming years.

– 'Incredible working ethics' – –

At the World Snooker Academy in Beijing you can see a replica of the Masters Trophy, another of the most coveted prices of Snooker, as inspiration.

“Our entire focus is on youth training to help them reject bad habits in life and in their snooker technology, and to absorb positive influences during their development years,” said the head coach Zhang.

Competition is the key to training, with the academy each semester having six internal tournaments.

While Snooker is still missing the prestige in China of Olympic events such as table tennis and badminton, there has been a “dramatic shift” in Attitudes in the last two decades, Zhang said.

“The Chinese market is huge. Investors are abundant, they can sponsor some tournaments and the prize money for competitions is very high.”

With qualifying events for the most important tournaments of Snooker almost all in Great Britain, Chinese players usually go abroad as soon as they become professional.

Many end up in Sheffield in the north of England, some come as young as 17 to chase their snooker dreams.

Zhao trains Victoria Snooker Academy run on the China, just a short walk from the melting pot.

“The work ethics of the Chinese players is simply incredible,” said Lucky Vatnani, manager of De Ding Junhui Snooker Academy, also in Sheffield, to AFP.

“They play seven days a week from 10:00 to 18:00. I don't see that many English players do.”

“Their only goal is to play snooker,” he added to the Chinese players.

– 'World class' – –

In the basement Zhangqing Billiards Club in the capital, the 43-year-old fan Xiong Jian points to a photo of a young Zhao Xintong taken after his victory in a youth tournament more than ten years ago.

The image of the young champion hangs on the wall next to photos of ding and world stars such as Ronnie O'Sullivan, who defeated Zhao in the semi -final of the tournament in Sheffield.

Seven-time world champion O'Sullivan has warned that rising talent in Great Britain is “thin on the ground”, especially compared to China-by-from which he said that it was “champion from the framework” thanks to the financing of the Beijing government.

The fan and informal player Xiong said that the great population of China meant 1.4 billion: “There will always be families who will support their children on the Snooker path”.

He added: “The current environment is worlds except the 1990s or early 2000s.”

Between frames at the same snooker club, Zhu Guangqi believes that Zhao's melting pot will have triumph “an in -depth influence on the development of sport in China”.

He says that Chinese players will dominate Snooker within three to five years.

“Chinese players have a world -class competitive capacity,” he said proudly.

Sam/Oh/PST

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