Play STOPPED at World Snooker Championships as PROTESTER pours powder on table

A YOB defaced a snooker table at the Crucible with orange powder in one of the sport’s biggest EVER security breaches.

The environmental crackpot jumped out of the stands and then climbed on to table one during the first-round match between Robert Milkins and Joe Perry on day three of the World Snooker Championship.

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In an idiotic stunt, the individual then chucked some powder that covered the green surface and forced the session to be instantly halted.

In a coordinated attack, a woman tried to climb on to table two — Mark Allen was playing Fan Zhengyi — but she was stopped by Belgian referee Oliver Marteel.

The action was suspended and both protesters were detained by security backstage.

Police later confirmed they have both been taken into custody.

World Snooker Tour officials decided to abandon play on the damaged table one for the evening and completely recover it overnight.

No13 seed Milkins and qualifier Perry will now play their first session on Tuesday evening but it is understood the first frame will start again from scratch.

Stephen Hendry, the seven-time world champion, said on the incident: “I have never seen that before at a snooker event. It’s a first. 

“It is scary. Wow! You just hope the cloth can be recovered from that. It caught us all by surprise and then this happens. 

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“For me, straightaway as a snooker player I am thinking: ‘Is the table recoverable?’ We don’t know what that is on the table. There is a lot of things that need working out. It is unknown territory.”

MC Rob Walker donned a mask and marigolds gloves and joined in the hoovering operation with fellow colleagues.

The dramatic incident happened at approximately 7.20pm but play on table two resumed after a 40-minute stoppage.

World Snooker Tour officials decided to abandon play on the damaged table one for the evening and completely re-cloth it overnight.

And fans took to social media in disbelief at what they had just seen.

One tweeted: “What the heck just happened ????.”

A second commented: “Absolute morons.”

A third wrote: “Oh my god I’ve never seen anything like this before. A protestor jumps on the table and spreads some kind of orange powder on the table. SCENES!”

A fourth joked: “Wasting the best bit of a bag of Cheetos there.”

While a fifth added: “Who said snooker was boring.”

It is not the first time snooker matches at this iconic Sheffield theatre have been disrupted in such an abrupt manner.

A male streaker ran around the table before the final session of the 2008 final between Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ali Carter.

And last year a pigeon stopped play when it flew down from the roof and jumped on a hallow table.

The protest follows on from demonstrations at the Grand National on Sunday.

The iconic spectacle – eventually won by favourite Corach Rambler – was pushed back by 15 minutes as police and locals teamed up to drag the yobs away from the racecourse, with 118 arrests made.

But that caused major disruption to the horses who were taken back in from the parade ring and then brought out again.