Gary Anderson and Wesley Harms caused a stink at the Grand Slam of Darts by accusing each other of breaking wind on the oche in Wolverhampton on Thursday evening
BARRY HEARN has vowed to get to the "bottom" of the Fart-Gate saga which has rocked darts.
Gary Anderson and Wesley Harms caused a stink at the Grand Slam of Darts by accusing each other of breaking wind on the oche in Wolverhampton on Thursday evening.
PDC chairman Hearn told : "We’ve got to get to the bottom of this.
"I guess people wonder if blowing off might constitute advanced gamesmanship.
"Then again, referee Russ Bray was just about within farting distance.
"Something doesn’t smell right. There is nothing worse than a silent fart. This could run and run."
Hearn says the Darts Regulation Authority has the power to fine or suspend players guilty of gamesmanship or for showing a lack of professionalism.
The 70-year-old darts chief believes the controversy is “unique” in his experience, saying: “It’s the first time I’ve ever heard of such a contentious – almost contagious – incident.”
Hearn added: “On a slightly more serious note, this is a top-level competition involving highly skilled sportsmen – so we have no intention of renaming the event the ‘Grand Slam of Farts’ as some have suggested.
“These are elite players and we feel that would be inappropriate.”
In a post-match TV interview, Harms claimed his Scottish rivals was responsible for farting on stage.
Yet the two-time world champion Anderson suggested it was the Dutchman who left the unpleasant smell, which he reckons was as bad as “rotten eggs”.
Anderson beat the BDO ace, nicknamed Sparky, 10-2 at the Aldersley Leisure Village.
