A snooker fan dramatically fainted live on BBC during coverage of the World Championship quarter-finals from the Crucible with half a dozen other spectators rushing to ensure his wellbeing.
But the spectator, who was watching a segment with some of the top women’s players, was soon back on his feet and simply in need of a big glass of water because he was reportedly suffering from dehydration during an unseasonably warm day in Sheffield.
The man, wearing a blue T-shirt, was seen taking several deep breaths and rubbing his forehead as presenter Abigail Davies interviewed women’s snooker stars Daisy May Oliver and Hannah Jones at the Winter Gardens.
And he suddenly fell to his right and to the ground. Several other fans quickly ensured he was OK and presenter Hazel Irvine soon provided an update on his condition.
“It’s certainly hot here in the Winter Gardens,” Irvine said. “You might have seen earlier on when Abi (Davies) was interviewing some of the top women players in the game, there was a little incident behind her.
“A gentleman fainted. He’s absolutely fine, just a wee bit dehydrated. He’s now been given a very large glass of water and an ice cream. Everything is A-OK.”
The footage was shown during coverage of Thursday’s quarter-finals with John Higgins leading Mark Williams 5-3 in a battle of the veterans, while China’s Zhao Xintong is 6-2 in front against Chris Wakelin after their opening sessions..
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s meeting with Si Jiahui and Luca Brecel’s clash against world number one Judd Trump were set to get underway this afternoon, with the other two matches returning for the evening session. The quarter-finals are a race to 13 frames.
Should he triumph over Si, O’Sullivan could then meet either unseeded Chris Wakelin or Zhao Xintong, the ex-UK champion back from a 20-month ban, in the semi-final as he chases a record eighth world title.
But O’Sullivan has been quick to dismiss any notion of an easy path to victory. “Not really. I mean I’ve played this so many times and the draw opens up and you get beat,” he said. “That one loses, that one wins. The guy that wins it is usually the guy that deserves to win it. So, it doesn’t really matter what happens to the draw.”
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