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Andrew Cesare Richardson

Paul McNamara

Hong Kong’s reputation was unlikely to suffer because fans were kicked out of Kai Tak Arena midway through a first-round World Grand Prix match on Tuesday, snooker’s top official has said.
Spectators watching reigning world champion Kyren Wilson play Matthew Selt were ordered to leave ahead of a midnight curfew imposed by officials to coincide with public transport services stopping for the day.
The move forced World Snooker Tour (WST) to issue a “sincere apology” in the early hours of Wednesday, and led to Rosanna Law Shuk-pui, the secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, issuing a stern rebuke hours later to organisers and the officials responsible for running Kai Tak Sports Park.
Law said the two parties had to learn lessons, including about how to handle events that overran.


According to Law, around 100 spectators were told to leave the venue at 11.15pm. Of those, around 60 stayed, and around 20 subsequently got into a dispute with arena officials.
Organisers offered those affected free entry to a session of play on Wednesday or Thursday, and said they had “actively communicated with the venue operator”, so fans would be allowed to stay for late matches throughout the rest of the tournament.

Literally, fans HAVE to leave, due to policies.
You can’t make it up!
— TWSportsManagement (@TWSportsManager) March 4, 2025

Speaking exclusively to the Post, Simon Brownell, the WST CEO, said there were often challenges in snooker with tournaments never knowing “when a match is going to end”.
He said they “obviously tried to implement plans, as much as we could” in case of late finish.
“You’re never going to be completely aware of what’s going to happen,” he added. “We’re really confident that going forward there won’t be any similar issues.”
Before the incident, Brownell said he did not think “there are many places in the world that do snooker better” than Hong Kong.
He also looked forward to the tournament, which was previously staged in the United Kingdom, and is Hong Kong’s first ranking event since 1989, starting to “build the highlights reel and important, historical moments”.
On Wednesday, Brownell said the fans’ ejection had done nothing to dampen his enthusiasm for the event, and asked if the World Grand Prix had suffered reputational damage, he said: “No, I’m really excited for the next few days, building up to our final on Sunday.
“When you take … the 32 best players in the world and put them in an incredible atmosphere like we have here at Kai Tak, you’re going to get fantastic snooker.
“Our relationship with Hong Kong won’t be damaged as a result of this at all. This is an incredible place and we will continue to deliver a fantastic event, I’m sure.”
In an empty arena, Wilson, the world No 2, recovered from 3-2 down to beat fellow Englishman Selt 4-3 and set up a last-16 clash with John Higgins on Thursday.
Wilson’s management team though were far from happy, posting on X: “Literally, fans HAVE to leave, due to policies. You can’t make it up!”
Neil Robertson, who is also playing in the event, was watching on television, and said he “couldn’t hear any clapping, and thought, ‘this is strange’”.
He described the incident as “unfortunate for the players and the fans who wanted to see [world champion] Kyren Wilson”.
“Hopefully that’s something they can improve on,” Robertson said. “In the early rounds when it’s a roll on, roll off system, you’re starting matches very late. They offered those fans a free ticket, so that’s good.
“You want to play in front of big crowds. I feel for the guys who played last night, but it’s just one of those things.
“We played an entire season in Covid without fans watching … we have that as a reference point.”

Brownell said Wilson’s management company had not raised the issue with him, and there had been no complaints from Selt’s corner either.
The CEO said his organisation had resisted calls to introduce shot clocks to speed up matches.
“Snooker is a thinking person’s sport, you have to really assess the table,” he added. “If you shorten the matches, or make arbitrary decisions on the length of matches, you’ll affect the quality of the snooker.”
Organisers have advised fans to “plan their schedules and transportation arrangements in advance, based on the time they will be attending the matches”.
The six-day tournament, which was hit by the late withdrawal of star attraction Ronnie O’Sullivan, is the first event at Kai Tak Sports Park since the HK$30 billion (US$3.9 billion) complex officially opened on Saturday. The winner of Sunday’s final will pocket £180,000 (HK$1.8 million).
Additional reporting by Tom Bell


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World Snooker

Snooker’s top boss says Hong Kong’s reputation won’t suffer after fans kicked out early

Spectators watch the first round match between Mark Williams and Stuart Bingham at Kai Tak Arena. Photo: Elson Li

Judd Trump takes on Gary Wilson at Kai Tak Arena on Tuesday. Photo: Elson Li

World Grand Prix: Ben Woollaston falls just short after eleventh-hour dash to Hong Kong

Ben Woollaston lines up a shot during his first round World Grand Prix match against Shaun Murphy at Kai Tak Arena. Photo: Elson Li

Arsenal hit 7 in Champions League, Judd Trump wows at Kai Tak, Mavericks’ major KO

Declan Rice (left) and Gabriel celebrate after Arsenal’s massive victory over PSV Eindhoven in the Uefa Champions League. Photo: dpa

Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori (left) scores his side’s seventh goal against PSV. Photo: AFP

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior (left) celebrates with goal scorer Rodrygo. Photo: Reuters

Judd Trump looks on during his match against Gary Wilson of England at the Snooker World Grand Prix 2025. Photo: Xinhua

Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks lies on the court after suffering a knee injury. Photo: TNS

Sport

Hong Kong

World Snooker Tour CEO Simon Brownell says city won’t be damaged by incident at Kai Tak Arena, promises it won’t happen again


World Snooker Tour CEO Simon Brownell says city won’t be damaged by incident at Kai Tak Arena, promises it won’t happen again.


Kai Tak Sports Park

Rosanna Law Shuk-pui