In addition to the east of Yemen, Israel has launched 50 airstrikes against the Hodeidah region and a cement factory. 42 people were hurt and two were killed, according to reports from houthi-linked media. The strikes come in response to a Sunday missile attack from Yemen that hit Israel’s Ben Gurion airport.
Watch Zhao Xintong’s best shots as he defeated Mark Williams 18-12 in the World Snooker Championship final to become China’s first player to win the title.
The luckiest snooker frame, ever? In the end, Zhao pots two flukes.
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Within minutes of becoming China’s trailblazing world snooker champion, Zhao Xintong was draped in his country’s flag as he started to take in the enormity of his achievement.
Zhao defeated three-time winner Mark Williams 18-12 on Monday to become the first Asian player and amateur to triumph at the Crucible.
Williams called the 28-year-old a “superstar”, and Jason Ferguson – chairman of the sport’s governing body – said Zhao was set to take snooker “to another level”.
“We are talking about a national hero – he has entered the history books of this sport and in China he will probably be one of the biggest stars there, ” Ferguson, chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), told BBC Sport.
“Snooker is so big in China. He is young, talented and entertaining and speaks both English and Mandarin. This is going to take snooker to another level.
“China loves its heroes and winners. Some countries back underdogs but in China they really celebrate their champions. He has the ability to become the most popular sporting star in the country.”
The 28-year-old also became only the third qualifier after Terry Griffiths and Shaun Murphy to capture snooker’s biggest prize since the tournament moved to Sheffield in 1977.
His achievement is all the more extraordinary given he only returned from a 20-month suspension earlier this season after being one of 10 players from China sanctioned in a match-fixing scandal.
However, he carried over the scintillating form he has shown all season on the amateur Q Tour and remarkably became the first player to come through four qualifying matches and then lift the trophy at snooker’s most famous venue.
After the final Williams said: “I’m glad I’ll be too old when he’s dominating the game. I’ve got nothing but admiration for what he’s done, coming through the qualifiers. He hasn’t played for two years, bashed everybody up. There’s a new superstar of the game.”
“It could be huge for the sport. It could open floodgates everywhere. He could dominate or at least give [Judd] Trump or Kyren [Wilson] a run for their money. With the Luke Littler thing in darts. This is what snooker needed, someone like him coming through.
“It is bound to open doors. It will be front page on every news outlet going.”
Zhao’s success completes a double for the country, which has more than 300,000 snooker clubs for its population of 1.4 billion.
Bai Yulu was the first Chinese winner of the women’s world championship in 2024 and will defend her title in her homeland this month.
May Zhao, who is in Sheffield to report for the International Sport Press Association, added: “Zhao’s victory is not only a personal triumph but also a historic breakthrough for Chinese snooker.
“I think he will be given a huge reception when he returns to the country and this win is sure to inspire the younger generation in China and drive the development of the country’s training system and structure.
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While a record 10 Chinese players qualified for the televised stage of the World Championship this year, prior to the start of the tournament only four, Ding Junhui (sixth), Zhang Anda (11th), Xiao Guodong (12th) and Si Jiahui (14th) sat inside the game’s elite top 16.
It should also be noted that the top five players in the world are all British, and that world number one Judd Trump and 13th-ranked Shaun Murphy won the two other Triple Crown events – the UK Championship and the Masters.
Indeed, Trump and 2024 world champion Kyren Wilson won seven major finals between them this season, while until Monday evening Chinese success has been limited to two events on home soil and Lei Peifan’s win in the Scottish Open.
Yet Zhao’s achievement, which will parachute him in at number 11 in the world rankings, feels like a seismic and long-awaited moment for the sport.
“I can’t believe I could become world champion in such a short time [after the ban] so I am so proud of myself.
“It was nearly two years playing no competition so my first target was to qualify. Now this will give them [children in China] power and in the future many Chinese players can do this,” he said while conducting his post-match interviews.
Snooker has appeared ready to embrace an Asian champion ever since a shy Ding Junhui defeated seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry to win the 2005 China Open, two days after his 18th birthday.
That contest was watched by a reported television audience of 110 million in the country and since then, Ding, who lost the 2016 world final 18-14 to Mark Selby, has long been the flagbearer for Chinese snooker in a period when its popularity has exploded.
John Parrott, who won the world title at the Crucible in 1991, said: “We have been talking about it for years and years.
Zhao’s success is also a fillip for those who expect the game to be dominated by players from the Far East over the coming years, especially given the ‘Class of 92’ of O’Sullivan, Williams and John Higgins, have reached or are close to, their 50th birthdays.
While there is not a formal national curriculum dedicated specifically to snooker in China, the WPBSA is aware of the game being integrated into the school system through academies.
“I’ve seen first-hand children coming into the building at 09:00 handing in their phones and then spending hours playing snooker, alongside traditional lessons,” said Matt Huart, the WPBSA head of communications.
The World Championship final was available to every TV household in China on CCTV5 and World Snooker expected a potential audience of up to 150 million.
China is also snooker’s biggest market in the television landscape, making up more than 50% of its global audience.
“A lot of people have spoken about the volume of Chinese players in the later stages but if you turn the clock back 10 years this Tour was predominantly players from England and the other home nations,” added Ferguson.
“The tide has turned a little bit but you have to remember we are putting events on in cities over there that are half the size of the UK. It is a volume issue around clubs and participation. That means more stars are going to come through.
“Snooker is in schools, it is a mainstream sport. It is something we have to fight in this country [the UK] because you don’t see snooker in schools, but you can do athletics, rugby, football and all the other sports.
David Beckham has provided another sneak peek into his lavish 50th birthday bash with unseen photos. The former footballer celebrated his landmark occasion in style surrounded by his nearest and dearest – yet, there was no sign of son Brooklyn Beckham and his wife Nicola Peltz.
Despite the absence amid rumors of a family rift, it appeared Becks’ spirits weren’t dragged down by the snub. The star appeared firmly in party mode on Saturday night at London’s Core Restaurant.
Additionally, Becks took to social media to post more photos of the night, which is said to have ended at 3.30am as a result of noise complaints. He made fun of his efforts to lengthen his special day by jokering, “OK OK I promise this was the last party.”
A look at Cruz performing Island in the Stream was one of the recent snaps. In her own sweet social media post on David’s birthday, Victoria admitted that the song was personal to both of them.
Posting the snaps on both his Facebook and Instagram pages, David thanked those who helped him celebrate. He wrote: “Feeling very lucky to round off an amazing week celebrating my 50th with incredible friends , I think you can tell by my smile I enjoyed this…
We are still laughing and dancing after all these years, and I thank everyone, especially my wife @victoriabeckham.
The happy couple appeared stunning in a black-and-white snap of the pair as they stood on the stairs in the first image. Posh speaks at the dinner table while Becks is seen in another light of the conversation. She can be seen smiling alongside him.
In a third image, Romeo is seen embracing his youngest, before a fourth image shows Romeo bringing out his father’s birthday cake. Cruz’s guitar playing and David dancing with his daughter were other shots.
Despite Brooklyn not being at the parties, Becks did mention his son in an Instagram Stories message. He was enjoying time in Scotland with his other sons and shared an image of their trip.
The former England footballer documented a fishing and camping holiday with his two younger sons, revealing that the trip had been in the works for several months. The visit, which included preparing freshly caught scallops, blue lobster, and crab, appeared to focus on simplicity, family time, and the outdoors.
For my 50th birthday, Beckham wrote in one sentence: “Six months ago planned a trip to camp and fish with my boys at the start of last week.” was a lot of fun.
Becks tagged his 26-year-old son above a lakeside photo featuring himself with Romeo and Cruz in another image, saying, “You were missed Brooklyn.
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Emma Willis has made her first public admission to having a “head scramble” after receiving the news, but she is now learning to handle the “psychological adjustment.” She acknowledged that the operation did cause her to have a “head scramble” when she first heard about it.
TV host Emma shocked fans when she posted on social media last month about how she went under the knife a few weeks previously after being given a shock diagnosis that she had a hole in her heart and needed keyhole surgery. At the time on instagram she expressed her gratitude to the medical staff at the Royal Brompton Hospital who treated her. and also admitted she had been living “blissfully unaware” of her condition.
Asked how she feels now post op, she highlighted a Bafta party she had been to the night before this interview took place and said she “felt good” and that was the first time she had been out.
But in terms of how she has coped mentally, Emma said: “I think it’s a bit of a head scramble when you find out something like that, that you’ve kind of had it your whole life and you had no idea about. But you put your trust in the medical team that they’re advising you to do the right thing, and then it’s just a process.
I have my mind on all possible things and situations because I’m a brilliant overthinker. I really get myself into it when I go into something like surgery. I had a lot of anxiety and reluctance.
“And then we did it, we came out, and it’s thankfully keyhole, which is really brutal, and the recovery has been smooth, which is nice.
Because you don’t have a wound visible, I believe, it’s much more of a psychological adjustment. You can’t feel the internal healing that is occurring.
“But kind of getting your head around the fact that your heart needs to learn how to operate differently from how it has for nearly 50 years. You become a little spooky because of any little oddity with it. I’m adjusting to it.
Emma was speaking about the surgery as she and Matt Willis promoted their new TV series. Change Your Mind, Change Your Life brings together a team of leading therapists who’ve agreed to open the doors to their work and show their sessions on screen.
Emma mentioned her husband Matt’s recovery from surgery and how she could use some support from a coach in terms of wellness and breathwork.
The couple follows a range of people in the UK to learn about how therapy can help them change their lives. The four episodes also offer advice on how to overcome everyday difficulties and demonstrate how to talk about your concerns.
Matt believes there is still work to be done, and the series should be a good one, despite the dramatic shifts in society toward mental health and openness toward issues like depression.
The four episodes of *Change Your Mind, Change Your Life… with Matt & Emma Willis are available on BBC iPlayer starting on May 13 at 11 p.m. for all four episodes.
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Zhao Xintong began this season suspended from snooker after a match-fixing scandal but is tipped to be the sport’s new “megastar” after becoming the first Chinese player to win the World Championship.
The 28-year-old, who lives just a 10-minute walk from the Crucible Theatre venue in Sheffield, joined Terry Griffiths and Shaun Murphy as the only qualifiers to land snooker’s biggest prize since the tournament’s 1977 move to South Yorkshire.
His 18-12 victory over Mark Williams on Monday means he is also the only amateur to claim the world title in the Crucible era, and the youngest winner since Murphy in 2005.
Zhao, who hails from Xi’an in north central China, moved to the UK in 2016 and was appearing in the third ranking-event final of his career.
“Winning the championship is the big dream for Chinese snooker,” said Zhao, prior to facing three-time winner Mark Williams in the final.
“When I was eight to 10 years old it was my first time to play snooker and from that moment it has been really far [to get to this point]. If you want to become a good player you need to do this [move away from home], even though it is very hard.”
He won the UK Championship in 2021 and the German Masters in 2022, but his burgeoning career was abruptly stopped when he was one of 10 players from China sanctioned in 2023 following an investigation into match-fixing.
Zhao did not directly throw a match, but he accepted charges of being party to another player fixing two matches and betting on matches himself, and for those offences he received a 20-month ban.
He returned to action in September on the amateur Q Tour and has won events in Manchester, Sweden, Austria and Belgium, while he also qualified for the UK Championship but lost to Shaun Murphy in the first round.
At the World Championship, Zhao had to advance through four qualifying rounds and then get past 2024 Crucible finalist Jak Jones, Lei Peifan and Chris Wakelin to reach the semi-finals.
Zhao, nicknamed ‘The Cyclone’, swept seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan aside with a session to spare in the last four, to record his 46th win in 48 matches since returning from his ban.
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The match-fixing case cast a shadow over the sport in China.
A world final delivered an almost immediate shot at redemption following what Jason Ferguson – chairman of governing body the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) – described as a “heartbreaking” episode that also involved former Masters champion Yan Bingtao.
Yet the nature of that transgression means some around the game believe it could spoil the celebrations of a long-awaited Asian world champion.
“Zhao’s ban has been served and he is perfectly entitled to be competing again, but I’ve found the flowery language since his return somewhat befuddling given the circumstances,” said snooker journalist Nick Metcalfe.
“I was in York the night he picked up the UK title and the announcer shouted the words: ‘A star is born.’
“So this is not some newcomer to the snooker public. It honestly feels at times like praise has taken the place of scrutiny. I’m also not convinced the timing is ideal for the sport by Zhao winning the world title now.
“Coming so soon after the ban, some of the headlines – certainly from outside the snooker bubble – might well be the last thing the sport needs.
“We all presumed that a first Chinese world champion would be a special moment for everyone in the game, almost a moment of unalloyed joy, but I’m sure that won’t be the case now.”
In contrast, Barry Hearn, president of Matchroom Sport which controls much of the professional game, said: “He has served a ban for what some people would call a very minor offence.
“He’s a quality player and I think he’s a nice young man. Rules are rules and you take it on the chin. If you make a mistake in life, you don’t look back, you look forward.
Since the turn of the century, there has been a British winner at the Crucible in every year apart from 2010 and 2023, when Australia’s Neil Robertson and Belgium’s Luca Brecel lifted the trophy.
But snooker’s popularity in China has boomed ever since a shy Ding Junhui defeated seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry to win the 2005 China Open, two days after his 18th birthday.
That encounter was watched by a reported television audience of 110 million people in the country, and since then the nation’s hopes of a first world champion have largely rested on the shoulders of Ding, who was runner-up to Mark Selby in 2016.
Speaking after his semi-final loss, O’Sullivan stressed that in Zhao, China finally had a player with the talent and temperament to fulfil that ambition.
“I think it would be amazing. If he did win, he would be a megastar,” said O’Sullivan.
“He’s still very big in China as it is. But if he becomes world champion it would just be amazing for snooker and for his life as well. He can definitely get over the line.”
China is snooker’s biggest market in the television landscape, making up more than 50% of its global audience.
John Parrott, who won at the Crucible in 1991, said: “We have been talking about it for years and years.
“Ding has been close and a real ambassador for China, but just imagine what Zhao will do for the game over there.
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