World Disability Snooker Championship 2026 | Tournament Preview
The 2026 World Disability Snooker Championship takes place on 17-21 June with 50 players competing for glory across eight classification groups.
The second staging of the flagship event on the World Disability Billiards & Snooker (WDBS) Tour heads to the SPADT Convention Centre in Korat, Thailand.
Ahead of the event, we take a look at the contenders in each group:
Group 1
Defending champion Gary Swift arrives in Thailand as the favourite for the title once again in Group 1.
The 54-year-old is the highest ranked Group 1 player in the wheelchair world ranking list and is joined by compatriot Matthew Lester, who was eliminated in the group stages in the inaugural World Championship.
The host nation is represented by Numpol Thongpusawan, who was defeated 3-1 by Swift in last year’s final, while the line-up is completed by 2025 semi-finalist Ma Wah Keung from Hong Kong China.
Group 2
Seven cueists from five nations will compete in Group 2 as Thailand’s Surasit Loisaratrakul aims to defend his title.
Loisaratrakul is one of two Thai players in the Group 2 line-up, alongside last year’s quarter-finalist Niwat Kongta.
Three-time WDBS event winner Shahab Siddiqui is one of the strongest contenders for the gold medal and is joined by world number 12 Jerry McFarlane as England’s representation.
China’s Da Chen will be looking to improve on a fifth-place finish in 2025 while Australia’s Neville Helou and WDBS Tour debutant Cheuk Pon Ng, from Hong Kong China, compete in a World Disability Snooker Championship for the first time.
Group 3
A strong Group 3 features the reigning world champion, the world number one and two other multiple-time ranking event winners among the seven hopefuls.
Thailand’s Thanapol Seekao defeated India’s Shayan Shetty 3-1 to win the inaugural World Championship title and both players will return to the event in 2026.
Two-time Belgian Open champion Peter Hull heads to Korat as the new world number one and will compete on the biggest stage in disability snooker for the first time.
Reigning back-to-back European champion Andy Lam, from Hong Kong China, and three-time WDBS event winner Kal Mattu will also feature among the challengers for a gold medal.
Thailand’s Kaisorn Thongla, who exited in the group stage last year, completes the line-up.
Group 4
World number one and defending champion Carl Gibson is the favourite in a Group 4 event featuring 10 cueists.
Alongside the 13-time WDBS event winner is Belgium’s Yannick Piscador, who is the second-highest ranked player in the group, while the Thai duo of Chai Matkun and Somsak Sae-Lao return to the flagship event.
Tour stalwarts Joel Mayberry, from England, and Wales’ Glenn Thomas each make their World Championship debuts. Meanwhile, Muhammad Ali (Pakistan) Andrew Kelly (Australia), Ching Tze Chun Rudy (Hong Kong China) and Saurav Kumar each make their first appearance at a WDBS competition.
Group 5
Reigning world champion Songkiat Raebankoo and European champion Shahzad Butt headline Group 5 at the World Disability Snooker Championship.
Thailand’s Raebankoo will be aiming to become a double champion on home soil with Butt, from Pakistan, is looking to improve on a run to the semi-finals last time around.
Iceland’s Brynjar Valdimarsson won the Challenge Cup event at last year’s World Championship and has since reached two ranking event finals to earn himself the spot as second seed in Korat.
A global group sees six countries represented in the nine-player competition.
World number four Gerdy Dupont is one of two Belgians in the group, along with Eddy Saelens, while Jodie Wikeepa and Kadari Murliraj return to the flagship event as representatives of Australia and India.
The line-up is completed by Thailand’s Kitigorn Chaiyachok and China’s Yuanyuan He who each make their World Championship debuts.
Group 6A + 8
The intellectual Group 6A and deaf Group 8 classifications will be combined due to entry numbers at this year’s World Championship.
Belgium’s Kristof De Bruyn is the reigning champion, having won the combined 6+8 competition last year, and returns to Thailand as one of the favourites once again.
Another notable name in the draw is reigning Group 6 European champion Nicklas Olsen, who is playing in only his second WDBS Tour event as he becomes the first player to represent Denmark at a World Disability Snooker Championship.
The Irish duo of Francis Coyle and Shea Fell, both former ranking event semi-finalists are joined by WDBS Tour debutants Jack Ryan, also from Ireland, and India’s Pravinkumar Ramkumar.
Group 6B
For the first time ever a Group 6B event will be staged at the World Disability Snooker Championship.
Lee Hague arrives in Korat as one of the favourites as he looks to go one step further than he did in last year’s event – where he lost out to Kristof De Bruyn in the final of a combined Group 6+8 competition.
Former British Open champion James Hart is also a strong contender as the highest ranked player in the competition, while Ben Rodgers completes the English trio.
India’s Jai Ganesh Marudanayagam, aged 47, is the fourth players in the Group 6B event as he makes his WDBS Tour debut.
Group 7
The reigning world champion, world number one and a returning champion all feature in a strong Group 7 event in Korat.
Ireland’s Dylan Rees became the first ever World Disability Snooker champion from his country 12 months ago by defeating compatriot Colvin O’Brien in the final.
The two both return to the biggest stage in Thailand with O’Brien, the current world number one in the visual classification group, looking to improve on a silver medal last year.
Another notable name is India’s Venkateswaran Subramanian, who won the first ever WDBS Tour event back in 2015 and makes his return to a ranking event for the first time in six years.
Completing the line-up is England’s Raymond Marsland, who arrives to Korat just weeks after reaching a ranking event for the first time in his career at the Hull Open.
The 2026 World Disability Snooker Championship takes place on 17-21 June and you can follow the event via WPBSA SnookerScores.
