Barry Hearn threw his weight behind Ronnie O’Sullivan’s proposal to open academies in England in order to stop a full -fledged Chinese takeover of snooker.
Alarming, only two British players under 30 are classified in the top 50 of the world – Jackson Page and Joe O’Connor – compared to 11 from China.
A record of 10 Chinese stars also composed the 32 players of the recent world championship, with Zhao Xintong, 28, becoming the first winner of the country.
During his own crucible campaign, the record world champion seven times, O’Sullivan, said that he was ready to put his name in a high performance center in England – as he did in Saudi Arabia.
And Hearn now wants to meet the rocket to try to withdraw his proposal, admitting that the lack of domestic talents is a “big problem” in sport.
“We are certainly going to talk to Ronnie to put his ideas into practice,” said the honorary president of the World Snooker Tour.
Ronnie O’Sullivan admitted that during the world championship that he would be ready to put his name in a high performance center
Barry Hearn now wants to meet the rocket to try to take off his proposal
Zhao Xintong won the most recent world championship to become the first Chinese champion in the history of competition
“The idea of having a Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy in all major cities makes sense. I really like that.
“ If it is serious about this, I welcome it 100% and to exceed it firmly to launch a series of Snooker Ronnie O’Sullivan academies throughout the country to inspire young people to play.
“Using your name would be a very precious asset to try to promote the base. Ronnie is transgenerational. When he plays, my wife looks, my grandchildren look at it because he is something magical. It is the complete package.
“If he really has the passion to leave his mark on future generations through academies or other, I think that World Snooker would take him behind. Let’s talk about it.
Hearn also admits that the domestic snooker shouts for their equivalent of Luke Little, after having seen how the interest in Darts has increased since the Warrington launcher became the youngest winner of the world title at the age of 17 in January.
“We need the Luke Littleler effect in Snooker without a doubt,” added Hearn, whose company’s match manages darts as well as snooker.
“I am frightened and attentive in the future. This is a big problem on which I know that the WPBSA works and tries to change. But you must first have the request.
“The world championship is an opportunity each year to sell the game at the next level of audience. And we have to work harder on this.
“We need more academies. But you need people who want to play and there must be a reason. The young people fell in love with darts after seeing Luke Little realize his dreams and suddenly become a multimillionaire.
