WPBSA International Update | October 2026
The latest WPBSA International Update takes a look at the national championships that have taken place in ten countries across five continents over recent months.
Photo: Snooker USA
USA
Renat Denkha completed a hat-trick of United States National Snooker Championship titles by beating Hasanain Alsultani 5-4.
Denkha won through a field at 47 cueists at the PABSA Academy in San Jose, California to increase his unbeaten run in the event to an incredible 23 matches.
The eventual champion, who first competed in the event back in 2017 where he reached the semi-finals, comfortably navigated the group stages before beating Alfred Tinger (3-0), Daniel Holoyda (3-2) and Daren Taylor (4-0) to reach the title match.
It was an enthralling final that went all the way to a ninth and deciding frame, but it was ultimately Denkha who was able to get over the line and complete a memorable hat-trick.
Photo: Edward Ling
Canada
Edward Ling won his first Canadian National Snooker Championship title by beating Cheukyin Kwan 5-4 at The Corner Bank in Toronto.
A total of 54 players competed at the event staged in Canada’s most populous city and Ling topped his seven-player group before reaching the quarter-finals with consecutive whitewash wins over Nitin Sharma and Dan Bissonnette.
Alan Whitfield, a former Q Tour Americas event winner who reached the national championship final last year, awaited him in the quarter-finals but Ling was able to earn a 4-2 victory before defeating Frank Ammirante by the same scoreline to reach the title match.
Kwan proved to be Ling’s sternest test as the final went all the way to a deciding frame but the eventual champion was able to hold his nerve and earn the title.
Photo: NZBSA
New Zealand
Mark Canovan defeated Joseph Conchie 6-3 to win the fifth New Zealand National Snooker Championship title of his career in Christchurch.
The New Zealand number one first won the national championship an incredible 24 years ago and he won through a 54 player field at Cuthberts Green to claim the title for a fifth time.
After topping his group with the loss of just a single frame, Canavan whitewashed Mark Collis, Baljeet Singh and David Fomm-Ward to reach the semi-finals where he then overcame Ian Muir 5-2.
The final saw the top two players from the nation meet in a repeat of the final of the second WPBSA Q Tour Asia-Pacific event earlier in the campaign and, just as it had been on that day, it was once against Canovan who secured the title.
Photo: SBI
Ireland
David Morris won the Irish Amateur National Snooker Championship for the sixth time by defeating Ryan Cronin 7-3 at the SBI HQ in Carlow.
The former professional beat Dave Faherty and Max Kennedy without the loss of a frame to advance to the finals weekend where the last 16 played down to a champion.
Morris, from Kilkenny, continued his fine form by beating Shane Sexton (4-0), John Sutton (5-2) and fellow former professional Joe Delaney (6-2) to set up a final meeting with Cronin.
In a race to seven, Morris looked comfortably and earned a 7-3 victory to take home the title for a sixth time.
Bulgaria
Viktor Iliev beat George Petrunko 5-4 to retain the Bulgarian Amateur Championship title in Sofia.
Iliev arrived as the defending champion among a field of 21 cueists and he comfortably advanced from his group without losing a frame.
Victories over Bratislav Krastev (4-0) and Georgi Velichkov (4-2) then saw Iliev into the final where he faced Petrunko.
It was Petrunko who scored the highest break of the final, a 105, but he was unable to deny Iliev as he took the match in a deciding frame to retain the title.
France
Niel Vincent defeated Nicolas Mortreux 5-4 to win the French National Championship title.
Twelve players contested in the event in Ronchin and Vincent comfortably advanced from the group stages before overcoming Gregory Kopec (4-0) and Jean-Marc Beauchamp (4-1) to reach the title match.
Former champion Mortreux awaited him and the final was closely-contested with both players compiling multiple half-centuries as the match went all the way before Vincent took the decider to earn to title.
Latvia
Filips Kalnins beat Nikita Bazilevichs 5-0 to win the Latvian National Championship title in Riga.
Kalnins, who reached the final of last year’s event before losing out the six-time champion Rodion Judin, came out on top this time around from the 19-player field.
Victories over Aivis Lamberts (3-0), Arturs Kengis (3-1) and Anna Prisjaznuka (3-2) earned Kalnins a final match-up with Bazilevichs, who had overcome defending champion Judin in the semi-finals.
It was Kalnins day, however, as breaks of 76 and 91 helped him to a 5-0 victory in the final round.
Denmark
Daniel Kandi defeated Alfred Melbye 5-0 to win the Danish National Snooker Championship for the 10th time.
The event was staged in Aarhus and saw 41 of Denmark’s finest cueists competing for glory.
Kandi, who last won the title in 2023, beat Duane Goodman (4-0), Akos Szabo (4-0), Ejler Hame (4-1) and Nicklas Olsen (4-1) to set up a final meeting with Melbye.
The multiple-time champion was in relentless form and rounded off a near-perfect tournament by defeating his opponent 5-0 with a top break of 77 to regain the title.
Photo: FIBIS
Italy
Gianmarco Tonini won his fifth Italian National Championship title by defeating Marco Palmieri 5-2 in Treviso.
Tonini has now won the title for three consecutive years and won through a field of 24 cueists to complete a memorable hat-trick.
After qualifying from his group, Tonini beat Emanuele Perotti (4-1), Gianluca Manoli (4-1) and Paolo Giangualano (4-0) to reach the final.
There, he scored four half-centuries including a top break of 76 to earn a 5-2 victory over Palmieri and take home the title.
Photo: Cue Sports Singapore
Singapore
Bernard Tey Choon Kiat beat Marvin Lim Chun Kiat 4-2 to win the Singapore National Championship title.
A total of 79 players contested the event with the eventual champion beating Gabriel Aw (3-1), Alvin Lee May Sim (3-0) and Gary Alexander Davner (3-0) to reach the final.
Having trailed the final 2-0, Kiat rallied to win four successive frames and win the title.