Yousra Matine has sacrificed everything for Snooker and now she wants the rest of her country to do the same.

The 23-year-old, who currently plays on the Women’s World Tour, says her dream is to see snooker grow in Morocco, the country she was born in. 

‘There are a lot of good players’ said Matine. ‘When I see them I am jealous because, in Morocco, we don’t have 20% of this level.’

Matine’s passion for the game came from her fiancé Amine Amiri, who is currently the only African men’s player on the World Snooker Tour after triumphing at the 2019 Africa Games. He taught her to play snooker when they met three years ago, and her love for the sport has grown ever since.

Amiri says that there is a lot of work to do in Morocco for the future of snooker. There are not currently any coaches or sponsors, but he remains hopeful that one day the country will hold a proper tournament.

There does appear to be a changing culture now though, and Matine stresses that ‘everyone is trying to be more open-minded and organise more tournaments.’

World Snooker Federation president Jason Ferguson succeeded in getting snooker included at the African Games for the first time this year. He said ‘it is clear our sport has a place in Africa and this landmark inclusion event is just the beginning as we aim to provide more opportunity for players in the region.’

Matine became the first women to win snooker’s gold medal at the African Games this year in Casablanca, and hope’s this will be the first of many.