The 2020 World Snooker Championship had been postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Earlier the event was scheduled to take place from 18 April to 4 May has been scheduled to July 31st to August 16th at the Crucible Theatre.
The championship, the 17th and final ranking event of the season, has taken place for 43 years running at the Crucible in Sheffield. After discussions with key stakeholders including Sheffield City Council, the BBC, Eurosport and Sheffield Theatres, new dates for the World Snooker Championship have been agreed.
The dates for the qualifying rounds have yet to be confirmed.
WST Chairman Barry Hearn said: “We are delighted to confirm new dates for this huge global sporting event which has an international television audience of 500 million people. The world is going through a very challenging period but live sport can be a massive inspiration for the public and can boost morale. This gives fans of top-class sport something on their calendar to look ahead to and enjoy for 17 days.”
“It is crucial for our 128 tour players to know that we are doing everything we can to get our circuit going again as soon as it is considered safe to do so by the government. The players are self-employed and they need opportunities to earn, while we keep the health and safety of everyone involved in an event of this scale as a priority,” he continues.
“In recent weeks we have had intricate negotiations with our key broadcasters including the BBC and Eurosport as well as the Crucible itself and Sheffield City Council. I would like to express my gratitude to all of them as we have progressed to a solution,” he added.
“Our sincere hope is that we are able to play the tournament with a full crowd as usual. This event means so much to the fans who have a golden ticket for the Crucible experience, and to the people of Sheffield. The players will desperately want to compete in the atmosphere that only a packed Crucible can generate,” he added.
“However if that is not possible then we will give careful consideration to each scenario,” he concluded.
Councillor Mary Lea, Cabinet Member for Culture Parks and Leisure at Sheffield City Council, added: “The World Snooker Championship is one of Sheffield’s annual highlights, something the city looks forward to and is immensely proud of. Although it is disappointing that so many of our events have been cancelled or postponed it is also essential while we meet the current challenges.”
“I’m pleased that the Championship has been rescheduled and I really hope that it can be celebrated at the Crucible Theatre in true Sheffield style when it is safe to do so. We will continue to work with WST and support all decisions taken, to help them deliver the competition whilst keeping everyone safe,” she said.
The top 16 seeds earn an automatic place at the Crucible, and they will be joined by the 16 players who come through the qualifying rounds.