A star is born

In recent years there has been a monumental surge in the rise of women in sport. The England ladies’s team in football has massively helped this cause with the win in the “She Believes” tournament and a tremendous run in the World Cup. In snooker I have campaigned tirelessly for the ladies’ game to be promoted and invested in and thankfully this is slowly coming to fruition. One such player who has been a key component of this change is Emma Parker. Parker who like her colleagues Reanne Evans and Ng On-yee have worked tirelessly to create a snooker environment where women can compete at the same level as men and hopefully one day, play under one umbrella.

Twenty year old Emma who first started pool at the age of four and turned to snooker at the age of fifteen after her father and uncle took her to Romford Snooker Club. This Hornchurch lass has had a meteoric rise in the ladies’ game since that first experience and thanks to the great coaching work of my friend, Gary Fitness, has started to cement her place in the sport. In April, 2017, she won the Under-21 Ladies World Championship at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds and following further success, rose to ninth in the women’s world rankings in June, 2019.

Parker recently became one of several players, including her good friend, Reanne Evans to be invited as one of eight wildcards to play in the 2019 Snooker Shootout. Competing with all 128 players on the main tour, Emma made history by becoming one of the first female players to compete in the final stages of a televised world ranking event. A great achievement but sadly she lost to India’s Laxman Rawat, 17-61. First turning professional in 2017, Emma already has silverware in her trophy cabinet, having already won the following tournaments:

2018 British Open Under-21 and Challenge Cup

2018 European Women’s Masters Under-21

2017 UK and World Women’s Under-21 Championship winner

Parker has also been a semi-finalist in the 2018 Women’s Masters and a quarter-finalist in the 2018 European Women’s Masters

Emma is definitely one of several young players who people are starting to talk about and I am keen to promote any new talent in our sport. The game is definitely in a a good placed and with the likes of Emma Parker as a player, the ladies’ sport will just grow and grow. Television exposure is crucial in achieving this goal as players like Emma need to experience the bright camera lights and numerous television cameras surrounding them as they play. For any player, whether male or female, I feel this is so important in building their self-confidence and allowing them to play their natural game on a match table. Emma will go from strength to strength and is definitely now a fully fledged star of the ladies’ sport. Emma is currently part of the famous Dunstable Snooker Club, managed by my good friend, Suny Singh and is looked after by C’s Promotions.




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