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Snooker star Ronnie O'Sullivan opens academy in Singapore

Seven-time snooker world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan has opened his first academy at The Grandstand in Singapore on 11 June 2022. The 46-year-old Englishman spoke to Yahoo News Singapore about winning the world title in May, and his hopes for Asian snooker talents to shine.

Video transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

RONNIE O'SULLIVAN: To be honest with you, I didn't-- didn't actually want to win another world title. I was really happy with what I've done in the game. And I was enjoying myself for the last six, seven years, no pressure, having fun.

But if you're going to win the world championship, then you have to expect pressure. And it's not so much fun. So I didn't really want to go through that, but I did. [LAUGHS] And I'm not sure I'd want to go for it again, but I probably will. But anyway.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Yeah, I think it's good for any sport, really, to have an academy where they can come whether it's Snooker, football, tennis, golf, just to have a facility like this for someone that wants to come and playing Snooker is brilliant, you know? If one day you get some young boy that comes in that has an amazing talent for the sport, at least you can provide an environment where they can develop their skills, and hopefully, one day become a champion, you know?

[MUSIC PLAYING]

To me, I just want to enjoy it. The most important thing is to enjoy it, have fun. And if I don't enjoy it, like the world championships I didn't enjoy, I fought-- and I've won it, but I didn't enjoy it. So I think, why am I doing it? But yeah, it's crazy, you know?

So it's a strange one, really. I'm the opposite to what you should be. But I just listen to my gut instinct. My gut always listen to that. If that tells me that something is right, then I don't question it, you know?