EMOTIONAL Kyren Wilson has revealed his mum postponed an operation linked to her breast cancer treatment so she could watch him at the Crucible.
Weeks before he lifted the World Snooker Championship for the first time, Wilson’s family were rocked by the “horrible news” that his “hero” Sonya had been diagnosed with the illness.
ReutersKyren Wilson’s mum postponed a breast cancer operation during the World Championship[/caption]
What was not known publicly until after he won the Northern Ireland Open on Sunday night was that his parents had made a difficult decision while he was focusing on winning in Sheffield.
It was around the time he faced David Gilbert in a three-day semi-final that she told doctors to defer surgery so she could support her son as he chased the £500,000 top pot and a place in the history books.
Thankfully, she is on the mend and on September 7, Wilson announced on Instagram that his mum had been given the all-clear, which family and friends celebrated with a “cheeky curry”.
Wilson, 32, said: “It was about two weeks before the World Championship. We had just got back from holiday in Portugal.
“She knew beforehand but waited to tell us until we got home.
“Snooker comes second in those situations. Your health is your wealth.
“She actually postponed an operation to have a tumour removed. It was actually due around the semi-final for her to have the operation.
“She didn’t want to miss my match. That’s why I think you got an over-emotional Kyren Wilson at the end of the World Championship.
“I ramped the pressure up on myself. You do start thinking silly things. You think: ‘What if? What if she doesn’t see me win it?’
“I knew I had to make that one count. Who knows what would have happened to me if I didn’t make that one count?
“It’s great I wasn’t in that position and we managed to celebrate.”
Wilson has bounced back from that stunning Crucible success by winning two titles already this season – the Xi’an Grand Prix in China and then the NI Open, which has a trophy named after Alex Higgins.
The world No.2 is battling with Judd Trump – whom he smashed 9-3 in the final in Belfast – for the number one spot.
His mum spent most of the week with Kyren and brother and manager Taylor, cooking them food and celebrating the £100,000 victory with her grandkids.
At some point over the coming weeks, Sonya has a date in the diary at her local tattoo parlour to mark the milestone of her son becoming the 23rd different Crucible world champion.
Wilson – who is next in action on Sunday at the International Championship in Nanjing – explained: “We all have tattoos of the world title. She has that one coming up.
“I will go there with her and watch her suffer!
“I have got a big chest piece – I sat there for eight hours having my one done. It was agony.
“I’m not sure where she is having hers. We plan to all have a sword going through a crown and it says ‘World Champion 2024’.”