2020 World Championship Postponed Due to Coronavirus

After a week of uncertainty, the decision has been made to postpone the rest of the 2019/20 snooker season.

It has been officially confirmed that the 2020 World Championship, due to be staged next month in Sheffield, will be postponed.

As snooker, like most other sports around the world, grapples to contend with the implications of the global coronavirus pandemic, the decision has been taken to reschedule the end of this campaign.

The 2020 World Championship was due to take place at the Crucible Theatre between April 18th and May 4th.

A week-long qualifying event was also required in the build-up to the tournament, and that will obviously be postponed as well.

It will be the first time since the sport’s blue-riband competition was first hosted by the Crucible Theatre in 1977 that a World Championship won’t be held in April.

Judd Trump was expected to put up a firm defence of the title he claimed in style almost a year ago in Sheffield.

The world number one, who has collected a record six ranking trophies this term, will have to wait a little longer to see if he can become the first player to break the “Curse of the Crucible”.

Doubts still remain as to whether the 2020 World Championship will be completed or not, but the WST hopes to stage the tournament during the summer.

Earlier this week, the Tour Championship that was due to be staged at the Venue Cymru in Llandudno was also cancelled.

“WST intends to host the final stages at the Crucible on rescheduled dates in July or August,” the WST said in its official statement.

“We are awaiting feedback from the BBC and our other principal broadcasters before dates are confirmed and we hope to make a further announcement in the coming days.”

“When new dates are confirmed, tickets for the final stages will be automatically transferred.

“All ticket holders will be contacted and the Crucible website and social media will be updated – we respectfully ask that ticket holders don’t contact the Crucible Box Office at this time.

“Q School 2020, which was due to start on May 18, has also been postponed until after the completion of the Betfred World Championship.”

WST chairman Barry Hearn said: “These are tough times for everyone but we are determined to get through it.”

“Fans around the world – as well as the 144 players involved – are anxious to know if and when the World Championship will go ahead.

“I can assure everyone that we are doing all we can alongside our broadcasters, the venues and other partners to confirm new dates as soon as possible.

“Snooker players are self-employed, they need opportunities to earn prize money so we have a responsibility to them.

“We are currently exploring the potential to stage tournaments behind closed doors to keep the circuit alive, with more details to follow next week.

“Live televised coverage of the biggest sporting events can be an inspiration to people around the world in these challenging times so it is important that we strive to find solutions for our tournaments.”

Featured photo credit: WPBSA