Category News

Charlotte Dujardin paid tribute to the deceased horse Valegro, who has won three Olympic gold medals and three golds.

The duo added another individual gold medal to their Rio 2016 Olympic medal haul in 2016 by winning gold in both individual and team dressage.

Under Dujardin, Valegro was the most admired dressage horse in British history.

Following an investigation into a video of her “excessively” whipping a horse, the 40-year-old Briton was given a year in the sport in December 2024.

Dujardin’s first Instagram post after the ban was made at the age of 23, which included Valegro’s announcement that he had been shut down.

Dujardin wrote on Instagram, “I knew this day would come, but I don’t think I could ever be ready for it.”

“A partnership that everyone mentions, but you won’t really know until you’ve had it.” And we performed “Blueberry,” didn’t we?

The pair also won six gold medals at the European Dressage Championships and two gold medals at the World Equestrian Games.

Uthopia, Valegro’s stable-mate, who with Carl Hester was also a member of Britain’s gold-winning dressage team at the 2012 Olympics, has also been put down at the age of 24.

Hester complained that the couple experienced old-age health issues.

Hester claimed that Valegro and Uthopia gave our sport a “golden era” and went beyond winning medals and writing history.

They piqued the hearts of so many people and made a nation proud.

Zhao Xintong’s life changed forever, and so did the sport in his native China.

In May, Zhao, 28, defeated Mark Williams 18-12 at the Crucible in Sheffield to become the sport’s all-time greatest champion, completing an incredible nine-game winning streak that stretched from the opening qualifying round all the way to the final.

After winning 6-1 over compatriot Long Zehuang on Monday in the first round of the UK Championship, Zhao said, “I’m trying to learn, but now being world champion is very different, you need to do more things.”

“I’m learning how to enjoy the table and when I win any match, I’m just very happy because there’s a lot of pressure,” he said.

I’m very busy because this is my first public appearance. Although I don’t have time to practice, I’m now trying to find the balance and improving. This is not entirely true, in my opinion!

After a rollercoaster few years that plunged him from the sport’s depths to breathtaking highs, Zhao is struggling to deal with all that has happened.

Zhao won the UK Championship title over Luca Brecel 10-5 in the final match in York to officially introduce himself to the snooker world in 2021.

However, because he was one of the ten Chinese players to be banned from the game due to the corruption scandal, his future in the sport was uncertain.

Zhao did not directly play the game; instead, he was initially given a two-and-a-half year suspension that was later reduced to a year and eight months. He accepted the accusations that he had personally cheated on matches with other players and had been a party to them.

Before his stunning Crucible run, he made his first appearance at the top-level snooker last year at the UK Championship.

Making breaks of 107, 68, 51, 59, 52, and 72 in his victory over 28-year-old UK debutant Long on that memorable May night, Zhao impressed in a Triple Crown event (World Championship, UK Championship, or Masters).

Long, who is 54th overall in the world rankings, battled through three qualifying rounds to reach York and was unable to hold back Zhao’s 6-0 defeat.

If Zhang Anda defeats England’s Gary Wilson on Monday evening (19:00 GMT), Zhao could meet another Chinese player in the last 16 and make the draw for 12 of the 32 players, which is the highest number in a Triple Crown tournament.

Zhao hopes to make another extended run to York Barbican, a place that will always be near his heart.

He said, “I have good memories here because this was my first championship; Barbican is my lucky location, so I enjoyed that today.” I’ve only just begun, and I’ve not finished, so I can improve in every way in the future.

Zhao described how his life had changed recently following his victory over Long.

When I return to China, Zhao added, “It is a significant difference.”

Zhao revealed that his family was so agitated they couldn’t watch his World Championship final, but that he is also the one who gets the nerves when he plays.

Because there was a lot of pressure, Zhao said, “When I played the final, they turned off their phone and went on a city walk.” They turned on the phone three hours later to receive the message that [he was world champion] they did not want to look at the TV.

Zhao hopes to inspire other players, just as Ding Junhui did him when he defeated Stephen Hendry in the 2005 China Open to win the tournament two days after his 18th birthday.

It’s very beneficial for Chinese players, Zhao continued, and the current standing of Chinese snooker is impressive. Everyone gains confidence and strength because I won the World Championship, and that’s what I did.

Four Chinese players were present on the two television tables for the first time in a Triple Crown tournament on Monday afternoon, bringing a piece of snooker history to the table.

Three-time UK champion Ding beat Xu Si 6-4 on table two, helped by breaks of 103, 66, 92, 109 and 64.

Before we both started struggling and messing around, I found some breaks and it didn’t seem like I was in the game for the first five or six frames.

Ding believes Zhao’s world championship will inspire more young Chinese people, putting the nation on the map for the future.

Ding remarked, “There are more young Chinese players now who are playing much better.” I’ve done a lot of snooker in China throughout my career, and Xintong has just won a championship.

“In 15 years, I don’t see many players from the UK or Europe]achieving top 16,” said one player. There are countless young people in China who are 12 or 13 years old.

When Zhao Xintong became China’s first world snooker champion, life changed irreversibly for him – and the sport in his homeland.

Zhao, 28, made snooker history in May when he completed an incredible nine-match winning run from the opening qualifying round all the way to the final, beating Mark Williams 18-12 at the Crucible in Sheffield to achieve the sport’s ultimate glory.

“I’m trying to learn and now being world champion is very different, you need to do more things,” said Zhao after his 6-1 win on Monday over compatriot Long Zehuang in the opening round of the UK Championship.

“There’s a lot of pressure and that’s a big problem for me so I’m learning how to enjoy the table and when I win any match, I’m just very happy.

“This is my first time to be famous and I’m very busy. I don’t have time to practise but now I’m trying to get the balance and trying to get better. I’m not sure this is all real!”

There is no wonder Zhao is struggling to absorb all that has happened after a rollercoaster few years that have taken him from the sport’s depths to breathtaking highs.

Zhao announced himself to the snooker world in 2021 by winning the UK Championship title, beating Luca Brecel 10-5 in the final in York.

But then his future in the sport was in doubt as he was one of 10 Chinese players to be banned in a corruption scandal.

Zhao did not directly throw a match but was initially suspended for two and a half years, reduced to one year and eight months after his early admissions and guilty plea. He accepted charges of being a party to another player fixing two matches and betting on matches himself.

He made his return to top-level snooker at the UK Championship last year, before his stunning Crucible run.

On Monday, Zhao played his first match in a Triple Crown event (World Championship, UK Championship or Masters) since that memorable May night and he impressed throughout, making breaks of 107, 68, 51, 59, 52 and 72 in his victory over 28-year-old UK debutant Long.

Long, 54th in the world rankings, had to battle through three qualifying rounds to get to York and avoided a 6-0 defeat with a fortunate pot on the pink in the sixth frame, but could not fight back against Zhao.

Twelve of the 32 players in the draw are from China, the highest number in a Triple Crown tournament, and Zhao could meet another Chinese player in the last 16 if Zhang Anda beats England’s Gary Wilson on Monday evening (19:00 GMT).

Zhao is hoping to having another extended run at York Barbican, a venue that will always be close to his heart.

He said: “I have good memories here as it was my first championship – Barbican is my lucky place so I enjoyed that today. Now I’ve just started, I’ve not finished, so I can get better in the future in every area.”

After his win over Long, Zhao spoke of how his life had changed over the past few months.

“It is a big difference now when I go back to China,” added Zhao.

It is not just Zhao who feels the nerves when he plays, as he revealed his family were so tense they could not watch his World Championship final.

“When I played the final, they turned off their phone and went on a city walk because there was big pressure,” said Zhao. “They did not want to look at the TV, three hours later they turned on the phone to get the message [he was world champion].

Zhao hopes he can inspire other players, just as Ding Junhui inspired him after he won the 2005 China Open, two days after his 18th birthday, by beating Stephen Hendry.

“It’s very good for Chinese players and Chinese snooker now is very strong,” added Zhao. “I won the World Championship and that gives everybody the confidence and helps them get stronger.

There was a piece of snooker history in Monday’s afternoon session when for the first time at a Triple Crown competition, four Chinese players were on the two television tables.

Three-time UK champion Ding beat Xu Si 6-4 on table two, helped by breaks of 103, 66, 92, 109 and 64.

“The first five or six frames it didn’t look like I was in the game, then I found some breaks, but before we were both struggling and messing around.”

Ding feels Zhao’s world title will help inspire more Chinese youngsters and the country could dominate the sport in the future.

“There are more young Chinese players now that are playing much better,” said Ding. “I’ve done a lot for snooker in China in my career and now Xintong has won a world title.

“In 15 years, I don’t see many players from the UK or Europe [being in the top 16]. In China there are hundreds of young ones at a good level, at 12 or 13.