22-year-old Wu Yize becomes second-youngest World Snooker Champion
The Chinese player became the second-youngest world champion and the second successive winner from China. He defeated Shaun Murphy in a decider on Monday before returning home to crowds chanting and cheering at the TNT billiards club.
abcnews.go.comWu Yize entered the TNT billiards club in the western Chinese city of Xi'an to a hero's welcome on Thursday, greeted by loud chanting and cheering from fans who packed the venue to catch a glimpse of the new world snooker champion. The 22-year-old became the second-youngest player ever to win a world snooker title after defeating Shaun Murphy in a decider on Monday.
A Chinese player has now won the World Snooker Championship for the second year in a row, an achievement that has captivated the country.
The baby-faced snooker magician showed off shots to an audience that responded with oohs and ahs, including during a match against one fan. Liu YiFei won a play-off to play snooker against Wu Yize in Xi'an. She said Wu Yize's success had made her more determined to improve her own skills.
Liu YiFei said that in China so many more people are playing snooker, more pool halls are opening, and the sport is becoming ever more popular. An estimated 60 million people play billiards in China every year across around 300,000 billiards halls. Chinese players currently make up a quarter of all players on the professional snooker circuit.
BBC News reported that this share is likely to increase with new generations already coming through. Li Hao travelled from Wu Yize's home province to meet him in Xi'an. Another fan from the same province took hours by high-speed train to reach the city and get a photo of the champion signed.
Wu Yize hails from Gansu province, China. He dropped out of school at age 16 to move to Sheffield, England, to pursue a professional snooker career. An eight-year-old boy told the BBC he wants to be champion like Wu Yize.
The boy's comment reflected the excitement in the room, where one of the youngest fans declared his ambition to grow up playing at the same level. The TNT billiards club event underscored the sport's rapid growth in a country where facilities remain relatively cheap to access.
Wu Yize waved modestly with the expression of a shy 22-year-old suddenly thrust into fame at home, yet the enthusiasm around him never wavered.
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