Sponsored by
Crucible fighting to prevent Chinese takeaway
The Betfred.com World Snooker Championship will be back at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre next year. That is for certain.
Beyond that? Nobody knows, but if you listen to the plethora of former world champions who are all fully paid-up members of the Crucible fan club, you would be left in no doubt where they would rather have snooker's blue riband event staged.
World Snooker chairman Sir Rodney Walker is currently in talks with Sheffield City Council about extending the contract to keep snooker in the city beyond 2010.
The bottom line is the city has to offer snooker more cash to keep an event which has been hosted in Sheffield since 1977.
Hanging over their heads is the threat of snooker-mad China luring the World Championship to Beijing, which already hosts the China Open.
"I'm in the middle of discussions with Sheffield about the future, as indeed I talked to the Chinese when I was in Beijing last weekend," said Walker on the eve of this month's return to the Crucible.
"China, or indeed Dubai, may have very deeper pockets than Sheffield.
"I'm on the side of what's best for snooker," said Walker, although cynics suggest China may just be a bargaining tool to get the best council deal.
Walker added: "You can't ignore the popularity of the sport in China.
"We've been very fortunate that in the last three years, having taken an event over there at our own expense, they've picked it up.
"Now we have two ranking tournaments there, one of which had an audience of 100 million people, simply because of the sheer numbers of people out there."
And China will always win the numbers game. But at what price?
To sell the World Championship to the highest bidder would be like getting rid of Wimbledon or Lord's. The Crucible is not perfect but it is perfect for snooker. It is the home of snooker.
Former world champion Dennis Taylor should know, he has been to the Crucible every year since it started in 1977, and he shudders at the thought of exporting the Championship out of the UK.
He said: "Sheffield is very special. If they take snooker away from the Crucible it would be so bad for the game.
"China is great, Dubai is great, but the home of snooker is Sheffield and they should keep it here.
"I can't ever see the World Championship being taken away from the Crucible. The BBC would have to be involved somehow and it wouldn't be the same if it moved. Sheffield is home to the tournament."
The 1985 winner is not alone in these sentiments. The majority of players – past and present – herald the Crucible's importance to the game.
Ken Doherty, who won the famous Crucible crown in 1997, said: "It's great to be back in Sheffield, it's a great city. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end this time of year – I always love coming to Sheffield for the World Championship. There's a great buzz around the city when the snooker comes here, it's special.
"I wouldn't like to see the tournament move away from Sheffield.
"The Crucible and the city are what makes the World Championship."
While the likes of current world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan and John Higgins bang the drum for snooker to be modernised, exploiting the game's popularity overseas, it would take a huge financial carrot to convince most of their playing colleagues that China is the solution.
There is also the small matter of the game's supporters. The Crucible sells out every year; moving to China would deprive them of watching the sport's top event in the flesh. And with the eight-hour time difference with the People's Republic, tuning in to watch the game on television would become an ardous task for all except the most ardent of fans.
Of course, snooker is big business for Sheffield, a fact not lost on the city council. Last year alone, hosting the World Championship brought 2.5m into the city's economy during the Crucible fortnight, and created media coverage worth nearly 3m.
"We are currently talking to World Snooker, with the aim of keeping the championship here beyond the current arrangement which ends in 2010," said John Mothersole, the city council's chief executive.
"We have a good relationship with World Snooker, and we have no intention of Sheffield losing this prestigious tournament."
Fighting talk. For the sanctity of the sport, the traditions of the Crucible and the future of snooker, it is a battle that Sheffield must not lose.
Email to a friend
Print this page- Leeds lose Ward to Palace: Is there anyone they can afford now?
- Sheffield Wednesday leaving it late to hijack Leeds United over Ward
- As Snodgrass dithers over Leeds, Warnock throws a lifeline
- Ball is in Leeds United’s court over contract - Snodgrass
- Police turning blind eye to Asian voter fraud, says MP
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Yorkshire
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
