Alex Higgins

Alex Higgins in 1968

Alex Higgins (March 18, 1949 – July 24, 2010) was a snooker player from Northern Ireland. He was born in Belfast and started playing snooker at the age of 11. He became a professional player in 1972 when he was 22. He won the 1972 World Snooker Championship by beating John Spencer 37 frames to 32. Ten years later, he won the 1982 World Snooker Championship by defeating Ray Reardon 18 frames to 15. Higgins was nicknamed the "Hurricane" because of his fast play around the table. Higgins retired from professional snooker in 1997.

Higgins smoked 60 cigarettes a day for many years. In June 1998, He was found to have throat cancer. On July 24, 2010, he died in Belfast at the age of 61. The cause of death was a combination of malnutrition, pneumonia, and a bronchial condition. He was clear from throat cancer when he died.