Precocious darts phenom Luke Littler has been shot out of a cannon onto the global stage.
Littler, who is just 16, lost 7-4 to Luke Humphries in the finals of the World Darts Championship at the Alexandra Palace (known to the rowdy fans of the darts world as Ally Pally) in North London on Wednesday.
It capped off a remarkable run, as the youngest champion on-record is Michael van Gerwen, who won the event at 24 years old in 2014; the previous youngest runner-up was Kirk Shepherd, who was 21 when he lost in the final in 2008.
Nicknamed “The Nuke,” Littler takes home a prize of £200,000 ($253,000), while Humphries’ share for winning is £500,000 ($633,000), according to the Daily Mail.
While Littler’s rise was stunning to the general public, he was in some ways groomed for this destiny.
A viral video that made the rounds earlier in the tournament shows Littler throwing darts when he was only 18 months old.
Another photo posted by Littler’s mother, Lisa, last July showcases the photo the family took when the tot hit his first bullseye.
By 3 years old, Littler was mimicking the celebration of his idol Raymond van Barneveld.
In a truly surreal moment, Littler defeated van Barneveld, now 56, in the round of 16 of the present tournament.
Littler reportedly got his first darts board when he was 4 years old, and has been winning adult tournaments since he was 14, starting with the Irish Open in 2021, before adding victories in the “British Open, Modus Super Series (twice), Romanian Open and Gibraltar Open,” per the Daily Mail.
He has taken on a cult status for his personality away from the dart board as well, opting for celebratory doner kebabs after his victories, with ham and cheese omelette and pizza before his matches.
Originally built in the 1870s, Ally Pally began hosting the World Dart Championships in 2007, with a capacity of over 2,500, according to the BBC.
The crowds are wild, and if you watch videos of the competition with your eyes closed you can easily imagine the constant barrage of chants happening at an English Premier League game.
An unsuspecting parent described on a message board what it was like to happen upon the scene.
“We went to Ally Pally before Christmas, but to go to the theatre to watch A Christmas Carol so different part of the venue, but were unfortunate to be travelling on the same train as the darts crowd,” mumsnet.com poster edwinbear wrote in the forum on Wednesday.
“The behavior was absolutely shocking. Huge crowds of adults dressed up like ketchup/mustard bottles, Beefeaters, traffic cones etc, all absolutely wasted already, swigging cans of beer and shouting/jeering/chanting.”
One former champion, Gerwyn Price, admitted to Sky Sports that he almost sat out this year’s tournament because he was “a bit apprehensive” that “the crowd would be on my back”, but overcame his concerns and was relieved that the audience was more receptive to him this year.
The fans have unsurprisingly taken a major liking to Littler, chanting at him “You’ve got school in the morning!” after wins.
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