Former world snooker champion Graeme Dott has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being found guilty of child sexual abuse.
The 49-year-old was sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on Tuesday, September 29, following a five-day trial at the High Court in Glasgow last month.
Dott was convicted of two charges of lewd and libidinous behaviour toward a girl and a boy between 1993 and 2010. He denied both charges.
Judge Lord Harrower told Dott that he had “robbed the complainers of a significant part of their childhood” and described his behaviour as a “gross violation of trust”.
The seven-year sentence was backdated to August 24, which was when Dott was remanded into custody.
The charges against Dott
The allegations involving the girl date from between 1993 and 1996 when she was of primary school age.
The court heard that Dott had inappropriately touched her while giving her a piggyback and had exposed himself to her on another occasion.
The woman, who is now in her 40s, gave a new statement to police in 2025.
Police had previously contacted Dott about the allegations in 2001, but no charges were brought at that time.
The second charge related to alleged incidents involving a boy between 2006 and 2010.
The court heard that Dott had made sexual remarks to the boy, watched him while he showered, and molested him.
The boy also told the court that he had been abused in a car on a number of occasions.
Dott, who reportedly covered his face with his hands and shook his head when the guilty verdicts were delivered, had described the allegations as “disgusting” and maintained that he was innocent.
Dott’s snooker career
The Scot had a distinguished career in professional snooker, turning professional in 1994 and reaching three World Championship finals at the Crucible.
He was beaten by Ronnie O’Sullivan in the 2004 final before winning the title two years later.
Dott defeated Peter Ebdon 18-14 in the 2006 final to become world champion, having also beaten O’Sullivan in the semi-finals.
He returned to the Crucible final in 2010, where he was beaten 18-13 by Australia’s Neil Robertson.
Dott also won the China Open in 2007, defeating Jamie Cope 9-5 in the final in Beijing.
His performances around that time saw him reach a career-high ranking of world number two.
Dott remained a professional player for more than three decades and was still competing on the World Snooker Tour when the allegations became the subject of criminal proceedings.
Dott removed from WST Hall of Fame
The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association suspended Dott from competition after the charges were announced in April 2025.
The WPBSA subsequently released a statement saying that it had “permanently revoked Dott’s WPBSA membership with immediate effect.”
The sport’s governing body also wrote to the World Snooker Tour requesting Dott’s removal from the WST Hall of Fame.
Dott has now been removed from the WST Hall of Fame.
Featured photo credit: WST
