Protesters disrupted it World Snooker Championship on Monday by climbing on the table and throwing a bag of orange powder paint over the playing surface.

The video shows the man – who was wearing a ‘Just Stop Oil’ T-shirt – running from the crowd and jumping onto the table during the match between Robert Milkins and Joe Perry.

While kneeling on the table, he then managed to empty a packet of orange paint powder onto the green surface before being hauled away by security.

At the same time, another protester also tried to disrupt the other match between Mark Allen and Fan Zhengyi, but was stopped by the referee and quickly taken away by security.

Although the incident lasted no more than a few seconds, the cleanup operation took a bit longer.

The match between Milkins and Perry was postponed until Tuesday as the table had to be re-dressed, while the game between Allen and Fan restarted after a 40-minute delay.

Protest group Just Stop Oil named the two activists and said the pair were “tricking” UK sports institutions into “uniting in political resistance” against the use of fossil fuels.

In a press release, the organization said the pair had been removed by security and arrested.

In a statement sent to CNN on Tuesday, South Yorkshire Police said: “A 25-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage. Both are in custody.”

“It’s the first”

“I’ve never seen anything like it in a snooker event. It’s a first,” former world champion Stephen Hendry told the BBC during coverage of the tournament. “It’s scary, actually.”

In addition to sporting events, Just Stop Oil activists have targeted art galleries. In 2022, members of the protest group threw soup at Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers at the National Gallery in London.

The World Snooker Championship is played at the iconic Crucible Theater in Sheffield, UK and is now the latest high-profile sporting event to be disrupted by activists.

Saturday’s Grand National horse race was also delayed after animal rights protesters managed to breach security barriers and run onto the track where police said more than 100 people were arrested.