2022 World Snooker Championship: Everything you need to know about the BBC-televised event

The showpiece event in the snooker calendar kicks off this weekend with the world's best players set to compete for the £500,000 prize. 

Here, Planet Sport takes a look at everything you need to know ahead of the tournament, including the draw, prize money, format and favourites.

For the 45th consecutive year, the World Snooker Championship will be held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

The event is scheduled to start on Saturday, April 16. First round games will last until April 21 while the second round will run until April 25.

The final of the World Snooker Championship will begin on Sunday, May 1.

The format of the 2022 World Snooker Championship is a 32-player knockout tournament.

First round matches will be a race to 10 frames, while second round and quarter-final games will be played in a best-of-25-frames format.

The semi-final will be a race to 17 frames, while the final will be contested in a best-of-35-frames format - the same as it has been since 1980.

Mark Selby arrives at the Crucible as the defending champion. The Jester from Leicester will be targeting his fifth world crown, which would take him above John Higgins in the all-time record books.

The 38-year-old beat Shaun Murphy 18-15 to claim the 2021 title and will begin the defence of his title against Welshman Jamie Jones.

Having won four tournaments this season, including the Masters and the recent Tour Championship, Neil Robertson is without doubt the big favourite for the worlds.

Judd Trump also arrives with form under his belt, having won the recent Turkish Masters and reached the final of the Welsh Open. Trump also won the Champion of Champions tournament earlier this season and reached the semi-finals of the Masters.

The 2019 world