The 14-year-old gunning for O'Sullivan's Crucible record

BBC News

07-04-2025

Michal Szubarczyk. Remember the name. The 14-year-old is hoping to make history this week by breaking Ronnie O'Sullivan's long-standing record to become the youngest player to qualify for the World Championships at the Crucible. The Pole has been making waves on the snooker circuit, winning the U16 and U18 European Championship titles in March.But the teenager really caught the eye by reaching the final of the open age event, which saw him beaten by 34-year-old Liam Highfield.That remarkable run was enough for Szubarczyk to be offered a two-year card offer on the World Snooker Tour (WST). His performances earned praise from three-time World Champion Mark Williams, who said the teenager is "not far away", external from the level of Ronnie O'Sullivan at the same age. But now Szubarczyk is aiming to break O'Sullivan's 33-year record by qualifying for the 2025 World Championships. Seven-time winner O'Sullivan is the youngest-ever qualifier at the Crucible, doing so at the age of 16 in 1992. With qualifying held months in advance of the tournament proper, he was then 17 years and five months old when he made his debut at the event, losing 10-7 to Alan McManus. 2023 Champion Luca Brecel holds the record for the youngest player at the Crucible's main event, playing at the age of 17 years and 45 days in 2012. Szubarczyk can comfortably beat both of those records as he heads into qualifying at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield on 8 April, with final round matches being played on 15 April. The Pole faces Scotland's Dean Young in the first round, with the winner of the best-of-19-frames tie going through to face Stan Moody.The teenager needs to win four consecutive matches to earn a spot at the Crucible, But a victory against Young would see Szubarczyk become the youngest player to ever win a qualifying match at the World Championships, beating the record previously held by Liam Davies, who was 15 years and 277 days old when he beat Aaron Hill in 2022.
How qualifying works
144 players enter the qualifying event at the English Institute of Sport for the World Championships. They are hoping to secure one of the 16 places on offer at the 32-player tournament, with 16 players already automatically qualified via their ranking. There are four qualifying rounds and players begin their campaigns at different points defending on their world ranking.