WORLD CHAMPION RONNIE O’Sullivan believes “many more” snooker players are involved in match-fixing.
England’s Stephen Lee faces a lifetime ban from the sport after he was found guilty on seven counts of match-fixing.
Lee, 38, is due to be sanctioned by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) later today but O’Sullivan says that there are plenty of others who have “loads to hide.”
“I’ve heard there’s many more players who throw snooker matches,” the five-time world champion tweeted this morning. “I suppose Steve [Lee] was just caught out.”
O’Sullivan expects to be fined for his comments, which are likely to be seen as bringing the sport into disrepute.
“I just love putting it out there bring it all out in the open,” he continued. “Nothing like a bit of transparency is what I say.
No need to worry if you got nothing to hid. But plenty of people have got loads to hide. That’s why there is no free speech. There [sic] hiding.They will prob fine me for talking about it. They don’t like you doing that. Like to keep things under the carpet.
WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson confirmed that Lee faces “a significant sanction” in what is the biggest match-fixing scandal to hit the sport since Quinten Hann was suspended for eight years in 2006.
Lee, who has been suspended since last October, was found guilty on seven counts of match fixing at four locations in 2008 and 2009, including one count at the 2009 World Championship.
