Ace Odisha cueist Ashutosh Padhy has been given an opportunity by Billiards & Snooker Federation of India (BSFI) to participate in the IBSF World Snooker Championships, scheduled to be held at Kanteerva Indoor Stadium in Bangalore, from November 18 to 29.

According to BSFI vice-president Bholu Mehta, India as the host has four extra entries for the World Championship. Padhy being the reigning National sub-junior and junior snooker champion, the BSFI has offered him one of the extra entries. The other three extra entries have been given to Manan Chandra, Sourav Kothari and Varun Madan. But these four cueists have to participate at their own cost.

A Standard-XI student of Delhi Public School, Kalinga, Ashutosh made his international debut earlier this year in the World U-21 Snooker Championship at Al Fujairah in UAE, where he reached the round of 32. Regarding his participation in Bangalore World Championship, he said he would be glad to grab the opportunity in bot his hands.

``It`s a dream opportunity for me and will confirm my acceptance of the offer as soon as possible. I played in the World Under-21 Snooker Championship earlier this year in UAE. It was a nice experience and helped me learn lot about the sport. I hope gain valuable experience by competing in the Bangalore World Snooker Championship,`` said Ashutosh, also a good footballer, who last week led his school team in the East Zone Inter-DPS Football Tournament at Bhilai.