Mark Allen to Play 24-Hour Charity Snooker Marathon Ahead of UK Championship

Snooker star Mark Allen insists his 24-hour charity snooker marathon on the eve of the UK Championship will not affect his title chances. 

The former champion, 39, is raising money for the family of pal Tyler McConnell who sadly passed away from cancer aged just 37 earlier this month. 

The event starts at midday tomorrow and runs through to Saturday afternoon with fellow snooker pros Jordan Brown and Robbie McGuigan also taking part. 

Allen will play 14 of the 24 hours at the event his Mark Allen Foundation is hosting. 

The Pistol, who kicks off his title tilt on Monday, said: “It’s for a friend who sadly passed away after a short fight with cancer. He was only 37, so basically we're trying to raise some funds just for his partner left behind and the three young kids all under the age of six."

“It's so sad because he had like a lump on his head that he just never went and got checked and I think the survival rate, if he had went and got checked early, was like 96% and he left it like 18 months and by the time they found it, it was just everywhere. He lasted about eight months."

“I've done it before. And I think I had to play 108 frames throughout the 24 hours. So it's a long, long old stint. It's tough. I've done it three years in a row and it was probably at my heaviest. I wasn't good for a couple of days after it."

“My neck and shoulders and back were in bits. But I'd like to think I'm in slightly better shape at the minute and if I do only have to do 14, then it shouldn't affect me too much.”

Perspective 

Allen has always been his own harshest critic, but admits recent events have shown him there is more to life than results on the baize. 

He added: “Ultimately when you're out there, you feel like it's the be all end all. And that's something that I don't really want to change because snooker is very important to me."

“But yeah, you look at the bigger picture sometimes and there's a lot worse going on in the world and losing a snooker game isn't ideal. It's not the end of the world. You get another chance the following week, to put it right.”

Allen heads to York’s Barbican desperate to land his third Triple Crown major after his Masters triumph in 2018 and his UK success three years ago. 

He reflected: “I’ve had three semi-finals and a tournament win shows that there's something there. But there's been a few first-round exits. Obviously not qualifying for China [International Championship] was a big thing as well. It's probably been 12 years since I didn't qualify for anything. So that was disappointing."

“It’s frustrating because I feel like I'm doing all the right things on the practise table. I've won a tournament again, which isn't always easy. There are a lot of positives to take."

“But it shows where I'm at in the game on the whole because people are talking about it being a little disappointing or maybe a little inconsistent and I've still been in the latter stages of a number of events. So the signs are good.”

*To make donations you can visit themarkallenfoundation.org & auction bids are on Mark Allen’s social media pages.