World snooker champion Zhao wants to "stay true to his heart"

China's Zhao Xintong, the newly crowned world snooker champion, said he will "stay true to his heart" after becoming the first Asian player to claim the title with an 18-12 victory over Welshman Mark Williams on Monday.

"When I was very young, I fell in love with this sport and pursued it as my life's passion. It hasn't been easy to persist, but now, winning the championship, I'm grateful to my younger self for holding on–that's the feeling," Zhao told Xinhua news agency in an exclusive interview in Sheffield, England, on Tuesday.

Born in 1997 in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, Zhao first picked up a cue at age eight and was instantly hooked. In 2009, at just 12 years old, he made the bold decision to pause his formal education to focus entirely on the sport.

"Studying or playing snooker? It was hard to balance both. Experts suggested a six-month trial hiatus from school, and when he started achieving good results, his teachers recognized his talent," Zhao's mother told Shenzhen TV.

"When I asked what he wanted to do after university, he immediately said, 'Play snooker.' That's when I decided to ignore outside opinions and support his dream."

Zhao's mother also shared an interesting anecdote about her son's early days in the sport.

"He wasn't tall enough back then, so he used to play while wearing roller skates. This actually made him develop a very fast style of play. He was the first in China to play snooker on roller skates," she recalled with a smile.

To nurture Zhao's talent, his parents converted the largest room in their home into a training space, complete with professional equipment and coaching.

Now 28, Zhao's journey has been anything but smooth. In January 2023, his career hung in the balance after he was handed a 20-month suspension for involvement in a matchfixing scandal.

Yet his comeback has been nothing short of spectacular. Since returning from suspension last September, he has won 47 of 49 matches, including a dominant semifinal victory over home favorite and seven-time world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan before seeing off three-time winner Williams.

Zhao is the first amateur player to win the world championship.

"A career Grand Slam is my dream, and now I can finally add it to my list," he told Xinhua. Having previously won the UK Championship in 2021, Zhao now only needs the Masters title to complete the Triple Crown.

Zhao will start at No. 11 in the world rankings next season, second among Chinese players behind Ding Junhui, who has long served as an inspiration for Zhao and is ranked sixth, with Britain's Judd Trump the world No. 1.