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WPBSA Announces New Partnership with DSActive

The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) is pleased to announce a new partnership with DSActive which will see both organisations work together to provide opportunities for people with Down’s syndrome to participate in snooker.

Female playing snooker.

Administered by the Down’s Syndrome Association (DSA), the programme aims to provide people with as many opportunities as possible to be active across England and Wales, with other sports including football, tennis and athletics already supported. All sessions are easily accessible and cater for a range of abilities and ages.

In 2015 the WPBSA oversaw the formation of World Disability Billiards and Snooker (WDBS), an organisation which aims to provide opportunities for disabled people to play snooker. Previous WDBS events staged over the past three years have seen people with Down’s syndrome pick up a cue and this new cooperation looks to develop this further by combining the expertise of both organisations.

In particular, the partnership will ensure:

  • Snooker becomes part of the DSActive programme alongside football, tennis and athletics.
  • Workshops will be provided for WDBS officials and WPBSA World Snooker coaches to raise awareness and encourage club-based DSActive groups, including expert information on how to best adapt activities to suit the needs of people with Down’s syndrome.
  • DSActive will publicise these new accredited sessions based at clubs affiliated to the EPSB’s 147 Club scheme and run by coaches who have attended the workshop.
  • Both organisations will work together to make pathways available for people with Down’s syndrome to become WPBSA World Snooker coaches.
  • The new partnership will be formally launched on 8 February at the WDBS Northern Classic 2019, with players from other sports groups in the area invited to participate in a ‘DSActive Festival’, forming part of the Friday Open Day for the event.

Bob Hill, WPBSA Club and Facilities Manager said:

“I’m really excited about our new partnership with DSActive, which will support our affiliated clubs and coaches to provide high quality and engaging opportunities for players with Down’s syndrome to play snooker. This will also create a route for those club-based players to compete in our WDBS events, knowing that they will enjoy the same positive experience in both environments.”

Alex Rawle, DSActive Project Manager said:

“We are really excited to work with WDBS and WPBSA to support more people with Down’s syndrome to play snooker. Snooker is a great sport for people with Down’s syndrome to play, we know many people with Down’s syndrome already benefit from participation in the sport and we want to make sure that more people get the chance to play.”

Image credit: WPBSA