Ross Smith opens up on rude comments from darts rivals on way to drastic weight loss

Ross Smith has revealed he was mocked by darts rivals for his fitness kick where he lost weight while on the PDC tour.

Smith embarked on a dramatic weight-loss journey during the Coronavirus pandemic, while competing on the PDC darts tour and swiftly moving up the rankings.

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The No.19 ranked star has become a familiar face at major tournaments, and he made superb progress on his journey away from the board while at tournaments.

With access to events for fans restricted, as players graced the oche in largely silence in front of empty rooms in behind-closed-doors tournaments, Smith decided to use this to his advantage.

The powerful scorer became a familiar face as he elected to jog around the venues in a bid to raise his fitness, with gyms and sports facilities closed during the European lockdown.

Other competitors on the tour mocked Smith as he recalled, with many choosing not to train their fitness, given the traditional aspects of playing the sport in pubs from years gone by.

But as he leads a new keep-fit era of players on tour, he hopes his story can instead help inspire others, as opposed to becoming a running joke.

He said when speaking about his journey: “I used to be really overweight – I still am a little bit and I don’t have a fine physique – but staying fit helps with my mentality.

“When I have done some sort of exercise, I feel fresh and ready to attack the day. Some players go to me, ‘Cor, aren’t you knackered after that?’

“No, if anything it wakes me up. I do it for mental health benefits and it’s important you keep yourself fit and active regardless.

“I started doing it about four years ago during lockdown. I turned up at Coventry and Milton Keynes when we were playing tournaments behind closed doors and I started running around the stadium.

“There was a few players out at the front there, not mentioning any names, taking the p*** out of me a bit and shouting, ‘Go on fatty, do another lap, what time do you call this?’

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“Now, slowly, I have noticed that a fair few now, are joining me. Damon Heta has massively got into his running. I know Luke Woodhouse is posting stuff in the gym.

“I am there trying to prepare for a quarter-final and it’s not the greatest of lifestyles. I think it’s important in this day and age you keep yourself fit and healthy.

“Back when it was Eric Bristow, darts was a completely different game, but darts has evolved and the PDC have done amazing to get it where it is now.

“Since I have got fitter, I definitely think it has helped massively because I come back to darts from driving a lorry, I had not won a thing.

“Never even hit the latter stages of tournaments, nothing. I was about 19 stone at 24, 25 years old. Now I have dropped down to 14 or 15st.”

There is a new cohort of players in the sport who not only train with the arrows, but keep themselves in an athlete’s mindset.

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And Smith is most certainly one of them, and will be hoping it helps him as he prepares to step on to stage at the famous Alexandra Palace in the prestigious World Championship.

‘Smudger’ has only ever reached the last 32, where he has crashed out in the most recent three instalments of the hallmark tournament.

But he will be hoping this year he can produce some more consistent tungsten magic, to oust some of the bigger names who are gunning for the £500,000 winners prize.

Smith possesses real scoring power, which has carried him to success in other majors including the European Championship which he picked up in 2022.

Be has yet to replicate his success in other TV majors, but is considered a real dark horse for the Sid Waddell trophy this Christmas period.

And having reached the quarter finals of the World Matchplay, as well as the last 16 of the Grand Slam and World Grand Prix this year, he is hoping he can go on a real run in north London.

He added of his ambitions: “I pinch myself – it seems only yesterday that I was driving lorries.

“If I win another major next year or the year after, as far as I’m concerned, I’ll have had a successful career.

“But I’d like to take that next step at Ally Pally – a couple of years ago I lost to Dirk [van Duijvenbode] and everyone said they enjoyed it with all the 180s, but I missed a couple of match darts at the end, so defeat was my own doing on that one.

“And I kicked on last year against Chris Dobey, when I had the highest average in the second round [104] and I still lost.

“Sometimes I need to relax a bit, and try not to look too much into the stats. It’s a reminder, a kick up the backside, that I punish myself so much.”

The PDC World Championship starts on December 15, with the final taking place on January 3.

talkSPORT will have live commentary of all the action across the network throughout the tournament.