The small pointed object, barely 20 grams, sinks into the target for the last time. Double four. Victory for Luke Littler. The Englishman, a phenomenon of his discipline, qualified on Monday 1^Ahem January, for the semifinals of the World Darts Championship, at just 16 years old. An anomaly in a sport dominated by paunchy thirty-somethings.

Behind him, the crowd turns to the sound of chase the sun, championship anthem. Here, a fan disguised as a bee; there, another Pikachu dress. Beers, beers everywhere. “The World Darts Championship has become an end-of-year institution, highlights the weekly The Economist. A debauchery, where the costume party and elite sport collide.”

A party with sports

During the two weeks of competition (December 16 to January 3), some 90,000 spectators will have frequented the halls of Alexandra Palace (Ally Pally for short), in north London. “Once a simple pastime reserved for pubs, darts has become a sport with global impact, where professional athletes can earn millions.” grades The times.

Event “Sinister” and confidential in the early 1990s, the world championship experienced meteoric growth under the leadership of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), a players' organization born from a split with the