Snooker Star Stephen Lee, Banned for 12 Years in Match-Fixing Scandal, pledges to Fulfill Late Wife’s Wishes
A tribunal found snooker player Stephen Lee intentionally lost matches in 2008 and 2009, resulting in a 12-year ban from the sport. Lee has now vowed to honor the wishes of his late wife, according to reports.
The 2008 Malta Cup saw Lee intentionally lose matches against ken Doherty and Marco Fu. He also agreed to lose the first frame against both Stephen Hendry and Mark King at the 2008 UK championship. Further inquiry revealed Lee lost matches by a predetermined score to Neil Robertson at the 2008 Malta Cup and to Judd Trump (previously Selby) at the 2009 China Open. He was also found to have conspired to lose his 2009 World Championship first round match to Ryan Day, losing 10-4.
Authorities confirmed no opposing players were aware of Lee’s involvement in the match-fixing.
The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) stated upon delivering the punishment: “The WPBSA has a zero tolerance approach to match fixing and this is further evidence of our uncompromising approach to dealing with such issues.”
Lee’s suspension represented the harshest penalty ever given to a player in the sport’s history until the 2023 Chinese match-fixing scandal, which led to lifetime bans for Liang Wenbo and Li Hang.Eight others, including reigning world champion Zhao Xintong, received extensive suspensions as a result of that investigation.
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