The world’s No. 1 snooker player John Higgins has said he faces “the biggest match of my life” after claims he agreed to take a huge bribe in return for fixing games.
Britain’s News of the World on Sunday released a video showing what it said was Higgins and his manager Pat Mooney agreeing to lose frames in four matches later this year in return for a 300,000-euro (US$400,000) bribe.
The news sent shockwaves through the snooker world and cast a shadow over the World Championship final, which started on the day the allegations emerged.
Higgins denied the claims.
“Today is the start of the biggest match of my life … It’s not the World Championship that’s at stake, it’s something even more important, my reputation. I have never been involved in any form of snooker match-fixing,” he said.
Snooker’s governing body suspended the three-time world champion from all its tournaments pending a probe.
Snooker legend Steve Davis, who unexpectedly knocked 34-year-old Higgins out of the tournament’s second round, described it as “the darkest day I’ve ever experienced in snooker.”
“I think the integrity of the game has effectively evaporated overnight,” Davis said.
In a statement, Higgins insisted his conscience was “100 percent clear” and said he had been “very worried” about the discussion reported by the paper, which took place in Kiev.
“When it was suggested that I throw frames in return for large sums of money, I was really spooked. I just wanted to get out of the hotel and on to the plane home,” he said.
“I didn’t know if this was the Russian mafia or who we were dealing with. At that stage I felt the best course of action was just to play along with these guys and get out of Russia [sic],” Higgins said.
A secretly shot video appeared to show Higgins discussing losing frames and missing shots during a meeting with Mooney and an undercover reporter.
The newspaper said Higgins said that “it’s easy” to lose frames deliberately without being detected.
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