Play suspended at Crucible after protester jumped on table mid-match and threw an orange substance everywhere; Just Stop Oil immediately claimed responsibility for the protest on their social media account; Mark Allen says "two idiots disrupted what should have been nice night of snooker"
Tuesday 18 April 2023 17:30, UK
The World Snooker Championship match between Joe Perry and Robert Milkins was delayed when a protester jumped on the table at The Crucible.
The man, wearing a t-shirt with 'Just Stop Oil' written on it, came out of the audience and jumped on the table before throwing an orange substance on it. He was then swiftly apprehended by security and removed.
A female protester was stopped from disrupting the match between Mark Allen and Fan Zhengyi on the other table by referee Olivier Marteel.
A 25-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, and have now been bailed until June 15.
The protest group Just Stop Oil immediately claimed responsibility for the incident with a post on their Twitter account.
Beginning with the headline "NEW OIL AND GAS WILL SNOOKER US", the statement went on to say: "At around 7:20pm, two Just Stop Oil supporters have disrupted the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, interrupting play.
"They are demanding that the Government immediately stop all new UK fossil fuel projects and are calling on UK sporting institutions to step into in civil resistance [sic] against the Government's genocidal policies."
Play was immediately suspended as cleaners brought vacuum cleaners into the arena and master of ceremonies Rob Walker was among those helping to sweep up the mess.
The match between Allen and Fan on table two was then able to resume after a delay of around 45 minutes, with Allen going on to complete a 10-5 victory.
However, table one was taken out of action for the rest of the evening as a result of the cloth being covered in the powder.
The match between Perry and Milkins, which was in the first frame when the interruption occurred, will instead recommence at 7pm on Tuesday followed by the second session getting under way at 9.30am on Thursday.
Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, on commentary duties for the BBC, said: "I have never seen that before at a snooker event. It's a first. It is scary - wow!"
Allen said following his victory: "I've got to be honest, I was completely oblivious to what was going on, but fair play to Olivier [Marteel] and the security staff who were totally on the ball.
"It could have been a lot worse. You saw what happened on the other table and how much disruption it caused. I was quite chilled, I just waited in my dressing room and had a cup of tea."
Asked about the methods used by the protesters, Allen added: "I don't quite get it - I don't know enough to have a valid opinion but I'd say there are better ways of going about it than disrupting a major sporting event.
"I feel like talking about it now is giving them airtime they don't deserve, because it is two idiots disrupting what should have been a nice night of snooker."
