Ding Junhui opens up on his unfulfilled ambition, mentorship, and legacy in revealing home interview

An 18-year-old Ding changed the course of snooker history with his memorable title victory at the 2005 China Open in Beijing where he defeated seven-times world champion Stephen Hendry in the final. It was reported that an approximate 110 million people tuned in to national sports channel CCTV-5 to watch Ding become the first Chinese player to win a world ranking event.

The triumph sparked a snooker boom in the Far East, and now just over two decades later, the last two World Champions are Chinese, and nearly a quarter of the entire professional player roster are from the country.

Mainland China continues to stage several big, lucrative tournaments on the World Snooker Tour each season; this term, it will host six events, and the World Grand Prix will once again be held in neighbouring Hong Kong.

Snooker's top-flight is currently in the middle of a roadshow across the country, with a 'Chinese swing' triple-header of the Shanghai Masters, China Open, and Wuhan Open. These three competitions alone have a combined prize fund of nearly £3 million.

Five Chinese players are currently inside the world's elite top 16 rankings. 14 of the 34 cueists in the main draw of the 2026 China Open are from the host nation.

Ding’s ultimate dream is to win the world title

Former world number one Ding - who is currently ranked 15th in the global standings - is one of the most decorated champions in pro snooker history with 15 ranking crowns to his name, including three UK Championship accolades. He has also landed the most prestigious invitational title in the sport, the Masters.

However, for all his influence and greatness, Ding has yet to win snooker's blue riband prize, the World Championship. 'The Dragon' came closest to lifting the trophy at the Crucible in 2016 when he became the first Chinese player to reach the world final, but he was denied by Mark Selby. Since then, Zhao Xintong created history in 2025 as the first winner from China, and the title has stayed in Asia with Wu Yize's success from a few months' ago.

Now aged 39-years-old - over 16 years older than Wu - Ding is still targeting Crucible glory, and continues to label it as his ultimate snooker ambition.

In an interview with Xinhua News in China, Ding said: "Winning the World Championship is definitely the ultimate target. It is not only my dream, but also the dream of every snooker player. The goal is still there, and so is the dream."

A former World Under-21 Champion, no Chinese player had come close to winning a professional title before Ding's Beijing heroics in 2005. Now in his 24th season in snooker's premiership, Ding is looked up to by his compatriots, and is seen as a father-type figure by many.

Ding has his own academy in Sheffield - where many of the top pros are based, including Wu and current Wuhan Open champion Xiao Guodong - and was appointed as a director several years ago by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association to mentor the Chinese professional players based in the United Kingdom.

"It is not only about competing myself. Drawing on my own competitive experience, I try to give them advice in daily life and offer maximum support to players eager to improve" said Ding.

“Our era is arriving” - Ding on a potential Chinese snooker takeover

Within the past three seasons, four Chinese players have won their maiden ranking title, and the three youngest members of the world's top 16 are from China. Ding - who posted on social media after Wu's Crucible glory "This is far more than one breakthrough. Our era is arriving!" - believes this may be the start of a Chinese ‘takeover’.

"I believe the best era for Chinese snooker may just be beginning. Many young players are steadily growing and developing” said Ding.

"We have not only Wu Yize and Zhao Xintong. I also have high hopes for Chang Bingyu and several newly turned professional players. They have only just stepped onto the professional circuit and still need time to mature. Their prospects are highly promising.

“Today's youngsters are exposed to top-level competitions at an earlier age and enjoy far better training resources. They bring different approaches to the table, and they execute them brilliantly.

“We are being taken seriously, and World Snooker cannot afford to overlook China. Everyone can see China's weight within the snooker market. I look forward to seeing wave after wave of young athletes grow into world-class stars. I hope more tournaments, even the Snooker World Championship, can be hosted in China.”

In terms of his own career, Ding faces a battle to keep his top 16 status over the coming months, but with several players several years older than him higher up the rankings, he could still have another decade or so in the big time.

Asked about his legacy and how people might view his impact and career when he does eventually hang up his cue, a grounded Ding was humble with his answer, instead focusing on Chinese snooker continuing to create the champions of the future: "I do not wish people to focus on the role I played in its development. Rather than remembering me or any single individual, I hope history will recall the continuous emergence of generations of elite talents."