‘The godfather of snooker’ Sindhu leaves the stage
An epic chapter in Thai sports came to an end yesterday when Sindhu Pulsirivong stepped down as the president of the Billiard Sports Association of Thailand (BSAT).
Sindhu’s reign at the helm of the BSAT lasted an unprecedented 30 years, during which he also served as the president of the World Professional Billiards & Snooker Federation (WPBSA), World Confederation of Billiard Sports, International Billiards & Snooker Federation, and Asian Confederation of Billiard Sports.
Suntorn Jarumon took over as new chief of the Thai cue sports governing body after he was elected unopposed at the BSAT annual general meeting yesterday.
Sindhu, who holds the distinction of being the first — and still the only — Asian to be inducted into the World Snooker Hall of Fame, said he would continue to help the association in an advisory capacity.
“Cue sports, especially snooker, continue to enjoy a large following in Thailand and our achievements at international competitions have been second to none,” Sindhu said after the meeting.
“I am happy that I was able to help develop billiard sports in Thailand and Asia, but I had been blessed with a number of quality people who helped me along the way.
“I am leaving the association on a strong footing and I am confident that Suntorn is capable of doing a good job.”
Suntorn, who has been associated with the BSAT in varying capacities for past many years, said: “I am expected to fit into the shoes which are one or two sizes bigger for me.
“I can’t promise the same degree of success as Khun Sindhu, but I promise to put in my best efforts.”
In an earlier tribute, Jason Ferguson, chairman of the WPBSA, referred to Sindhu as “the godfather of snooker”.
He said: “In recent years we have been able to reflect on how we got to where we are today and it seems there has been no greater contribution to the progress than that of Sindhu’s.
“It wasn’t only Thailand or Asia that benefitted from his guidance. We all did.”
One of Sindhu’s biggest achievements was his success in getting all four forms of billiard sports — snooker, English billiards, pool and carom — included in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games against all odds.
It was the presence of billiard sports in the Asian Games that changed the fortunes of cue sports in countries like China, India, Pakistan and the Middle East and led to an influx of top-class world professional events being staged in Asia.
Another of Sindhu’s most outstanding and memorable achievement came in 2007 when he introduced a truly Thai product called 6-red snooker to the world and later transformed it into a global phenomenon.
Sindhu was also an important part of the team which helped billiard sports earn an official recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in the late 1990s.