Minute’s Silence To Honour The Duke Of Edinburgh

Matches will be paused at the Betfred World Championship on Saturday for a minute’s silence to honour Prince Philip, who died last week at the age of 99.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral takes place on Saturday at Windsor Castle, with the service starting at 3.00pm.

At the same time, both matches will be paused on the opening day at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. Players, referees and fans will observe the minute’s silence in the arena. The four players and two referees will wear black armbands.

A spokesman for WST said: “This will be the first time in the 94-year history of the Championship that we have paused matches in order to honour the Royal Family and a country that is in mourning. The session will start at 2.30pm as planned and then just before 3pm the matches will be paused. This event is broadcast to over 100 countries around the globe so people watching worldwide can pay their respects to Prince Philip at the same time.”