(XINHUA)

Chinese professional snooker player Ding Junhui, ranked fourth in the 2011 World Snooker Championship held in Sheffield, England. In the semifinal, Ding lost to Judd Trump 17-15 and narrowly failed to become the first Chinese player to reach the snooker world championship final.

The conclusion of the 2011 World Snooker Championship marks the end of the 2010-11 season and Ding's prize money for this season amounts to 305,875 pounds ($504,079), ranking second in the world only after world snooker champion John Higgins.

Ding, 24, was born in east China's Jiangsu Province and started playing snooker at the age of nine. In 2002, Ding won the championship of Asian Tournament and became the youngest Asian champion in history. He is now the most popular and successful professional player in China and has many championships in hand, including the latest 2011 Snooker Masters champion at the Wembley Arena in London.