Stand up, if you love the darts! Sir Chris Hoy joined darts fans across the UK on their feet after Luke Littler’s historic World Darts Championship triumph on Friday night.
The Scots Olympic hero was on hand to present the Sid Waddell Trophy to the 17-year-old after he became the youngest winner in the tournament’s history, beating Michael van Gerwen 7-3 at the Ally Pally.
He is an ambassador for the BIGGER 180 campaign, which saw tournament sponsors donate £1,000 to Prostate Cancer UK for every 180 scored along with £180,000 for every nine-darter thrown to be divided equally between the charity, a fan in the crowd and the player.
The charity drive raised £1,027,000, with Luke ‘the Nuke’ nailing the most 180s (a remarkable 76) meaning he also won the Ballon D’Art trophy. Sir Chris hailed the donation as a “huge step forward” in the fight to make a meaningful change to the lives of millions of men.
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The Edinburgh-born cycling legend, 48, who has been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer, added: “The huge sum Paddy Power are donating will make a big difference to the lives of thousands of men. It’s a huge step forward and we are now one big step closer to making a long-lasting and meaningful change to men’s health.
“Around 40% of men who currently die from prostate cancer could be saved by a screening programme. The response to early-stage treatment is really good, but without noticeable symptoms, effective screening is the only way of detecting it in time to save lives.”
The money will go towards Prostate Cancer UK’s TRANSFORM trial which aims to make prostate cancer screening a reality. During the darts, close to 145,000 men completed the charity’s online risk checker.
CHECK YOUR RISK USING PROSTATE CANCER UK’S RISK CHECKER HERE. IT TAKES JUST 30 SECONDS
Sir Chris added: “The TRANSFORM trial aims to find the best way to test men for prostate cancer, so we can be sure which is the most effective method for a nationwide screening programme that could save thousands of lives every year. This massive cash injection can have an impact on men’s lives for years to come.
“When it comes to their health, men go quiet. That has to change. Checking your risk takes just 30 seconds, and it could save your life.”
In total, there were 907 180s during the three weeks of festive fun, along with two nine-darters from Dutchman Christian Kist and Aussie darts player Damon Heta adding £120,000 to the kitty.
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