Stephen Lee match fixing inquiry - a Guinness World record!

Breaking news - the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association's inquiry into alleged match fixing by professional snooker player Stephen 'diet' Lee has been awarded an illustrious Guinness World Record.

Managing Director of The Guinness World Records, Alistair Richards:

"We're delighted to award the Stephen Lee match fixing inquiry the accolade of the longest inquiry of all time. The previous holder was Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council in North England. They conducted an inquiry into an alleged distpute over how 'square' the pavements were meant to be in the main high street. The inquiry went on for four and half years and was dismissed after one of the members of the inquiry board died of boredom. The WPBSA inquiry has lasted five years and we're confident there won't be a conclusion for at least another five years. This is a sensational achievement for everyone at the WPBSA and World Snooker. Well done!"

Stephen Lee continues to deny all allegations of match fixing and also maintains he's never visited Basingstoke high street.

He's also the reason this is dragging on and hasn't concluded yet, not World Snooker.

It is quite incredible, not to mention farcical, that some of this 'case' goes back to matches in 2008! I assume there is video evidence of these 2008 matches? If not then I don't see how anyone is even going to remember what happened.

The inquiry is rather damaging to the sport. The John Higgins/News of the World 'scandal' took around six months to resolve (I think) whereas the Stephen Lee investigation has dragged on for five years! Mass murderers have quicker trials than this!

If Stephen Lee is found innocent I hope he can win some compensation for time wasted, stress, and any financial cost he's incurred.

SnookerFan wrote:

Sonny wrote:He's also the reason this is dragging on and hasn't concluded yet, not World Snooker.

How so?

hes changed his legal representation god knows how many times.


when that happens more often than not their own solicitor don't believe what the client says.

snooker_loopy wrote:It is quite incredible, not to mention farcical, that some of this 'case' goes back to matches in 2008! I assume there is video evidence of these 2008 matches? If not then I don't see how anyone is even going to remember what happened.

The inquiry is rather damaging to the sport. The John Higgins/News of the World 'scandal' took around six months to resolve (I think) whereas the Stephen Lee investigation has dragged on for five years! Mass murderers have quicker trials than this!

If Stephen Lee is found innocent I hope he can win some compensation for time wasted, stress, and any financial cost he's incurred.

There's more chance of Joe Jogia winning the lottery and paying off his legal fees.

snooker_loopy wrote:It is quite incredible, not to mention farcical, that some of this 'case' goes back to matches in 2008! I assume there is video evidence of these 2008 matches? If not then I don't see how anyone is even going to remember what happened.

The inquiry is rather damaging to the sport. The John Higgins/News of the World 'scandal' took around six months to resolve (I think) whereas the Stephen Lee investigation has dragged on for five years! Mass murderers have quicker trials than this!

If Stephen Lee is found innocent I hope he can win some compensation for time wasted, stress, and any financial cost he's incurred.

I do think this case will be resolved this season, if not this year, then surely in the first few months of the next one, cause as you rightly say this has dragged for SOOOOOOOOOO LOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNG now I really can't imagine what it'll be like if Stephen is proven inocent... so so many snooker lost, and above all this happened at one of the worst times cause Lee was in great form reaching the latter stages of tournaments very often. of course never a good time to happen, but I bet if given the choice he would have prefered back when he was playing the qualifiers after he dropped off the top 16.

I also do hope he is proven inocent, but as I said will have massive repercussions on his career and will also show how slow World Snooker has been dealing with this cause as you say even mass murderers can have faster trials than this.

Mass murderers are a tiny bit more obvious than trying to figure out if someone deliberately threw a match or was just playing badly on a specific day. Plus the original hearing was due in March sometime and it's down to Lee that it hasn't happened yet.

Jewell wrote:Lee has been well and truly shafted.

In your opinion without knowing the facts.

Skullman wrote:Mass murderers are a tiny bit more obvious than trying to figure out if someone deliberately threw a match or was just playing badly on a specific day. Plus the original hearing was due in March sometime and it's down to Lee that it hasn't happened yet.

My understanding was that when the case was due to be put to Sports Resolutions UK - the independent body who are hearing the case - World Snooker supplied all the requested information in time, but Stephen Lee's team did not, instead asking for more time. So the hearing date was reset to 9th September. Let's hope it goes ahead then.

Just to note, the timing has been out of World Snooker's hands since the case was referred to Sports Resolutions, and the delay has been on the Lee side - but obviously Sports Resolutions thought Lee's team had some justification in delaying or they wouldn't have allowed the hearing date to be reset. So maybe (boring though it is) the answer is that the delay is nobody's fault.

roy142857 wrote:

Skullman wrote:Mass murderers are a tiny bit more obvious than trying to figure out if someone deliberately threw a match or was just playing badly on a specific day. Plus the original hearing was due in March sometime and it's down to Lee that it hasn't happened yet.

My understanding was that when the case was due to be put to Sports Resolutions UK - the independent body who are hearing the case - World Snooker supplied all the requested information in time, but Stephen Lee's team did not, instead asking for more time. So the hearing date was reset to 9th September. Let's hope it goes ahead then.

Just to note, the timing has been out of World Snooker's hands since the case was referred to Sports Resolutions, and the delay has been on the Lee side - but obviously Sports Resolutions thought Lee's team had some justification in delaying or they wouldn't have allowed the hearing date to be reset. So maybe (boring though it is) the answer is that the delay is nobody's fault.

The delay is always because of Lee cause he did ask for it, but as you say maybe he had reasons for it, and I too hope that this is over soon, it's getting a bit too much now.

The inquiry got under way this week. Some of the allegations go back to the 2008/9 season. Five years to come to a tribunal. Incredible, isn't it? I hope Lee is innocent and can get back to playing snooker.