04 December 2023 , 15:23
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It's a whopper – one of the biggest trophies in world sport – weighing in at 16kg and standing more than 3ft tall.
At the Paddy Power PDC Darts World Championship, the player who hits the most 180 maximums in the tournament will win the inaugural Ballon d'Art. Poking fun at football's Ballon D'or, which has become the exclusive domain of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the accolade is linked to the Irish bookies' potential £1 million donation to charity.
Each time a player hits 180 with three darts at Alexandra Palace this year, Paddy Power will give £1,000 to Prostate Cancer UK – there were 901 maximums at last year's tournament. And the Ballon d'Art will go to the player who clocks up the most 180s at Ally Pally from December 15.
Michael Smith, who famously produced a stunning nine-darter in the final 12 months ago and hit more maximums (66) than anyone else in the 2023 World Championship, said: “We don’t need much encouragement to score 180s.
“But to know each one will trigger a £1,000 donation to Prostate Cancer UK is another fantastic incentive for us. Prostate cancer has never been on my radar, but hearing the disease affects one in eight men is a shocking statistic. Men need to be more aware of their risk of prostate cancer, and I include myself in that, especially as it's curable if caught early.”
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Spokesman Paddy Power added: “Football has the Ballon d’Or, so it’s only right that darts has the Ballon d’Art. It will be handed to the player who is literally single-handedly responsible for raising the largest sum of money for Prostate Cancer UK during the tournament."