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The Irish Sun
05-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Zhao Xintong wins World Snooker Championship as controversial star holds off Mark Williams to become China's first champ
UNSTOPPABLE Zhao Xintong has become China's first snooker world champion – eight months after his return from a corruption ban. New ground in the sport was broken as Xintong crushed the spirit and resistance of veteran potter Mark Williams 18-12 in the 49th Crucible final – despite a gusty fightback by the Welshman in the evening session. Advertisement 2 Zhao Xintong has been crowned world champion Credit: Getty 2 Mark Williams was unable to become a four-time winner Credit: Reuters With an estimated 150 million people watching the afternoon action on TV in China, the amateur ace banked £500,000 in prize money and moved up to 11th in the world rankings for next season. Nobody has played more matches and been engaged in more frames to lift the famous silver trophy than this part-timer cueist. Xintong – the first qualifier to win the title since Shaun Murphy in 2005 – has won NINE successive ties, including four qualifiers, and prevailed in 111 out of 172 frames in Sheffield, his adopted home, since April 8. It is an incredible streak and the lack of nerves and cool temperament shown this past month by the 28-year-old has been outstanding. Advertisement READ MORE IN SNOOKER Yet the reason he is not a professional player and technically an amateur is because until September 2024, he was serving a 20-month ban for being involved in a match-fixing sting. In June 2023, ten Chinese players were booted off the baize for fixing multiple matches and betting breaches. Xintong, a former top-10 player, did NOT fix a result himself but an independent commission found 'he was a party to another player fixing two snooker matches'. A 58-page Sport Resolutions report said 'his involvement was limited to placing bets' for best pal Yan Bingtao, 25, on the outcome of two matches in March 2022, 'whereby he became liable as a party to the two match fixes'. Advertisement Most read in Snooker CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS In a separate charge, Xintong was found to have 'bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules' between September 2019 and December 2022. Yet 'following early admissions' and by showing 'genuine remorse for his actions' a 30-month suspension was reduced to 20 months, the lightest ban of all the ten cueists. Ronnie O'Sullivan's match descends into chaos as table BREAKS during World Snooker Championship semi-final Whatever your view on whether he should be here or not, Xintong – who hammered Ronnie O'Sullivan 17-7 in the semi-finals – earned his spot on merit, having passed every test. Advertisement This time last year, suspended Xintong was in Shanghai – unable to play competitive snooker – pushing his fluffball dog, a Pom-Shi, around in a pram in his homeland. During his hiatus, the Cyclone divided his time between the UK and China, with the odd trip to Dubai – how all of that was paid for, given his unemployment status, goodness knows? History was massively against Williams, who was 11-6 down, when he arrived at the Crucible for the last time this year. An overnight deficit of four frames had been overturned on three occasions in a final, by Stephen Hendry (1992), Williams (2000) and Shaun Murphy (2005). Advertisement Yet five frames or greater had always proved too insurmountable to erase on the final day. A confident start by Xintong in frame 18, thanks to a 46 break, meant he went 12-6 ahead. There were genuine worries he might claim this with a session to spare – for the first time since Hendry battered Jimmy White in 1993. Williams took frame 19 but then Xintong claimed the next three to lead 15-7. The Welsh Potting Machine potted a 66 break in frame 23 to ensure there would be play in the evening but Xintong went into the 7pm session at 17-8 up, needing only one frame to become world champion. Advertisement Those who were paid up to £700 for VIP tickets thought they might see only one frame but were treated to four frames as Williams won the opening four, scoring a 101, 96 and 73, and threatened an incredible fightback. But then Xintong scored a 87 in frame 30 to become the new Crucible King and youngest world champion in 20 years -- and he celebrated the achievement by holding up the Chinese flag. Xintong – who lives a 10-minute walk from the venue – has won an astonishing 47 out of 49 matches since September 20. His adventurous, attacking style and determination to take on long pots, to not get engaged in drawn-out safety battles, has been thrilling to watch. Advertisement From Williams's perspective, to reach this point has been a significant accomplishment, especially as he has major eyesight issues. He is contemplating whether to go ahead with lens replacement surgery that is booked for June 12 or ask for his money back due to his displays this past fortnight. It does feel, however, like this is a changing of the guard moment and might usher in a new area of Chinese Revolution. To some, especially millions in China, Xintong will be seen as the new Messiah of snooker. Advertisement To many others, they will simply view him as a Very Naughty Boy.
The Sun
05-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Zhao Xintong wins World Snooker Championship as controversial star holds off Mark Williams to become China's first champ
UNSTOPPABLE Zhao Xintong has become China's first snooker world champion – eight months after his return from a corruption ban. New ground in the sport was broken as Xintong crushed the spirit and resistance of veteran potter Mark Williams 18-12 in the 49th Crucible final – despite a gusty fightback by the Welshman in the evening session. 2 2 With an estimated 150 million people watching the afternoon action on TV in China, the amateur ace banked £500,000 in prize money and moved up to 11th in the world rankings for next season. Nobody has played more matches and been engaged in more frames to lift the famous silver trophy than this part-timer cueist. Xintong – the first qualifier to win the title since Shaun Murphy in 2005 – has won NINE successive ties, including four qualifiers, and prevailed in 111 out of 172 frames in Sheffield, his adopted home, since April 8. It is an incredible streak and the lack of nerves and cool temperament shown this past month by the 28-year-old has been outstanding. Yet the reason he is not a professional player and technically an amateur is because until September 2024, he was serving a 20-month ban for being involved in a match-fixing sting. In June 2023, ten Chinese players were booted off the baize for fixing multiple matches and betting breaches. Xintong, a former top-10 player, did NOT fix a result himself but an independent commission found 'he was a party to another player fixing two snooker matches'. A 58-page Sport Resolutions report said 'his involvement was limited to placing bets' for best pal Yan Bingtao, 25, on the outcome of two matches in March 2022, 'whereby he became liable as a party to the two match fixes'. In a separate charge, Xintong was found to have 'bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules' between September 2019 and December 2022. Yet 'following early admissions' and by showing 'genuine remorse for his actions' a 30-month suspension was reduced to 20 months, the lightest ban of all the ten cueists. Whatever your view on whether he should be here or not, Xintong – who hammered Ronnie O'Sullivan 17-7 in the semi-finals – earned his spot on merit, having passed every test. This time last year, suspended Xintong was in Shanghai – unable to play competitive snooker – pushing his fluffball dog, a Pom-Shi, around in a pram in his homeland. During his hiatus, the Cyclone divided his time between the UK and China, with the odd trip to Dubai – how all of that was paid for, given his unemployment status, goodness knows? History was massively against Williams, who was 11-6 down, when he arrived at the Crucible for the last time this year. An overnight deficit of four frames had been overturned on three occasions in a final, by Stephen Hendry (1992), Williams (2000) and Shaun Murphy (2005). Yet five frames or greater had always proved too insurmountable to erase on the final day. A confident start by Xintong in frame 18, thanks to a 46 break, meant he went 12-6 ahead. There were genuine worries he might claim this with a session to spare – for the first time since Hendry battered Jimmy White in 1993. Williams took frame 19 but then Xintong claimed the next three to lead 15-7. The Welsh Potting Machine potted a 66 break in frame 23 to ensure there would be play in the evening but Xintong went into the 7pm session at 17-8 up, needing only one frame to become world champion. Those who were paid up to £700 for VIP tickets thought they might see only one frame but were treated to four frames as Williams won the opening four, scoring a 101, 96 and 73, and threatened an incredible fightback. But then Xintong scored a 87 in frame 30 to become the new Crucible King and youngest world champion in 20 years -- and he celebrated the achievement by holding up the Chinese flag. Xintong – who lives a 10-minute walk from the venue – has won an astonishing 47 out of 49 matches since September 20. His adventurous, attacking style and determination to take on long pots, to not get engaged in drawn-out safety battles, has been thrilling to watch. From Williams's perspective, to reach this point has been a significant accomplishment, especially as he has major eyesight issues. He is contemplating whether to go ahead with lens replacement surgery that is booked for June 12 or ask for his money back due to his displays this past fortnight. It does feel, however, like this is a changing of the guard moment and might usher in a new area of Chinese Revolution. To some, especially millions in China, Xintong will be seen as the new Messiah of snooker. To many others, they will simply view him as a Very Naughty Boy.
Telegraph
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Athletes warned kissing strangers and one-night stands risk drug bans
Elite athletes have been warned that even a kiss, let alone a one-night stand with a stranger, could leave themselves open to a career-threatening anti-doping violation. Arguing for a change in the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) code to raise the threshold for substances that can be transported 'through intimacy', Travis Tygart, who heads the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada), said that the current situation risked diverting resources away from catching real cheats. Tygart, who oversaw the operation that exposed Lance Armstrong's US Postal cycling team, is regarded as one of the most foremost anti-doping crusaders in world sport, but he wants greater leniency in this area. The tennis player Richard Gasquet once returned an anti-doping violation after kissing a woman in a nightclub who had been taking cocaine, but won his appeal after the woman herself corroborated his account. Tygart, who was speaking at the annual Sport Resolutions conference in London, also cited an American boxer called Virginia Fuchs, who avoided a suspension after she was able to show that an adverse finding had been caused by sexual transmission from her male partner. 'With Gasquet, he managed to get her to come and give evidence to say, 'Yes, I use cocaine. I kissed him in this nightclub',' said Mark Hovell, a sports lawyer at Mills & Reeve. Asked what would happen if an athlete had a kiss or one-night stand with someone they could not later track down, Hovell said: 'That's the problem – they might not have the evidence they need.' Tygart said that it was 'pathetic' that athletes could be placed in this situation. 'I think based on the cases we've seen: watch who you kiss, watch out who you have an intimate relationship with,' Tygart said. 'I think it's a pretty ridiculous world we're expecting our athletes to live in, which is why we're pushing to try to change these rules to make it more reasonable and fair. 'The onus is always on the athletes – we as anti-doping organisations, need to take some of that responsibility back. And I worry how many of the intentional cheats are actually getting away because we're spending so much time and resources on the cases that end up being someone kissing someone at a bar.' Tygart later explained that, as with some substances on the anti-doping code that are found in food, there were certain substances that can transfer between people through 'intimacy' and that it was simply a question of adjusting the minimum reporting level. Wada dropped a lawsuit against Usada earlier this year after Tygart alleged a cover-up in the handling of 23 Chinese swimmers, who were cleared to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. The China Anti-Doping Agency (Chinada) had said that positive tests for the heart medication trimetazidine (TMZ) were caused by contamination, a finding that Wada said that it could not disprove. It defended its processes and accused Tygart of a 'completely false and defamatory' claim. Tygart said on Thursday that China had still faced no consequences for a 'failure to follow the rules' and said that, according to a new study of the Tokyo and Paris Games, potentially 96 medals were impacted by the 23 swimmers who still competed. 'Until we get reasonable answers and honest answers, nobody should let it go away,' Tygart said. 'The big picture is you're talking 96 medals... 96 potential medals that the world deserves to know. And clean athletes certainly deserve to know. 'If we can't get Wada right, our athletes and others around the world are going to suffer by not having a fair and level playing field. We [the US in 2028] don't want to host a Sochi Olympic Games where dozens, if not more medals, are ultimately returned because the cheating was so rampant at those Games, as we now know.' Chinada says that the swimmers had not broken anti-doping rules and that the results were caused by contamination.
