Valkeakoski will host a snooker invitational competition next June.
Snooker World Champions Mark Williams and Stuart Bingham will compete in Finland on 9–11 June 2023.
The 47-year-old Williams is one of the most successful and popular players in snooker history. The Welshman is one of three players who come to mind when talking about the legends of the sport born in 1975. The other two are English Ronnie O’Sullivan and Scotch John Higgins.
Williams is a three-time world champion from 2000, 2003 and 2018. In addition, he has twice won the UK Championship (1999 and 2002) and the invitational tournament The Masters (1998 and 2003).
Williams is by Steve Davis and of Stephen Hendry along with being one of the three players who have won all three Grand Slam tournaments mentioned above in one season.
Bingham, 46, is the 2015 world champion and 2020 Masters winner. He is 14th in the current world ranking, while Williams is seventh.
The champions compete in an event called the Waltikka Snooker Cup, which is played at Valkeakoski’s Rantahotelli Waltikka.
The event is tentatively planned for four players, the third of whom is certain to be the only professional player in Finnish snooker history Robin Hull. The fourth player is one of the Finns who are pursuing a professional career, Heikki Niva or Patrik Tiihonen.
Even more snooker professionals may come to the event.
– At this point, I can confirm that at least these stars will be seen at Valkeakoski, the organizer of the competition Jussi Tyrkkö tells.
At the beginning of the 2000s, Tyrkkö, 45, aspired to become a snooker professional, touring several joint competitions between professionals and amateurs in England.
The native of Tampere eventually became known in international billiards circles as a table installer and tournament organizer.
13-year streak ended
The world’s best snooker players have performed in Finland before.
The previous visit was from 2010, when a tournament called the Finnish Snooker Challange was played in Turku. Williams won that tournament by defeating Robin Hull’s set 6–1 in the final.
Next June, the final will be played long, i.e. in two sessions.