O'Sullivan Faces Heavy Fine After Lewd Suggestions in China

Ronnie O'Sullivan faces a heavy fine and a disrepute charge after being caught on camera making lewd remarks in the wake of his exit from the China Open. The game's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, is reviewing a tape of his press conference where he appeared to make suggestive remarks while his answers were being translated into Chinese.

The tape, which has been posted on the internet, shows O'Sullivan growing restless at the time taken for the translation. After answering the first one, and while it is being translated into Chinese, he is seen pointing to his penis and asking out loud: "Do you want to suck that? Do you want to come and suck on that later?"

He then answers two questions about the match - a 5-4 defeat by Marco Fu - before asking an official: "Fuck me, how many more questions are they going to ask?" The reply comes back: "One more." While it is being asked O'Sullivan refers to the size and shape of his penis.

The WPBSA company secretary, Elaine Eyers, will now watch the tape and decide whether to report the 32-year-old to the disciplinary committee.

In December 2006 he received the personal backing of Sir Rodney Walker, the WPBSA chairman, after walking out of his UK Championship quarter-final against Stephen Hendry in York in the sixth frame when he was trailing 4-1. He was fined £21,000 despite evidence from doctors attesting to his fragile mental state.

O'Sullivan, the world champion in 2001 and 2004, has been treated for depression and is known to have a low boredom threshold. He once said he did not like traveling to China because "they don't speak English". He has, though, become more enthusiastic about the country since signing a six-figure advertising deal with a Chinese watch company last year.