Marco Fu still motivated and keen for snooker return after pulling out of World Championship over Covid-19 concerns
- Hong Kong’s former world No 5 says he is looking forward to the day he can travel again and compete on the World Snooker pro circuit
- Fu and women’s world No 2 Ng On-yee are among several Hong Kong players who have been advised against travelling to the UK because of Covid-19
Hong Kong No 1 Marco Fu Ka-chun is looking forward to returning to the professional snooker circuit once the Covid-19 pandemic has eased after deciding to pull out of the World Championship because of health concerns.
Fu and the rest of the Hong Kong team have heeded the advice of the Hong Kong Sports Institute and local snooker’s governing body HKBSCC, by declining to travel to Sheffield in the United Kingdom, which has the third-largest number of Covid-19 deaths behind the United States and Brazil.
“The figures I am looking at show that the risk of infection from Covid-19 is significantly higher in the UK than in Hong Kong at this moment,” said Fu, a three-time winner on the World Snooker tour and twice World Championship semi-finalist.
“The HKSI and the HKBSCC [Hong Kong Billiards and Snooker Control Council) are currently recommending that we should not travel overseas, as our health and safety is their main priority at this time.”
“Mindful of this information, I decided it would be prudent to withdraw on this occasion. I will continue to work hard here in Hong Kong and look forward to be ready to compete again when things have improved,” added Fu, who reached a career-high ranking of five in 2017 but is now ranked 50.
The World Championship qualifiers are set for July 21-28 at the English Institute for Sport in Sheffield but travellers to the UK may face a 14-day quarantine period.
