Neil Robertson has been forced to take oxygen after agreeing to play at an exhibition event in Tibet. The Australian is appearing at the Lhasa Winter Plateau Snooker Challenge alongside Mark Williams and 2024 world champion Kyren Wilson, with Xiao Guodong and Wu Yize also in action.

Robertson flew out to Tibet to play in the event ahead of the Masters, which gets underway on January 11. The exhibition features local players who have been given the chance to take on some of snooker’s biggest stars after winning a tournament. But the trip to Tibet has come with a caveat.

Lhasa is located a staggering 3,650 metres above sea level, which means oxygen is in short supply.

The paucity of the vital gas means visitors need to take in oxygen via a tank. And Robertson posted a video to X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday which showed him hooked up to a tank in his hotel room.

He then sent a video message to Williams, who also played in the exhibition a year ago, after the Welshman warned him ahead of the visit.

“When you said you had to just walk around the hotel room with this frigging oxygen tank, I thought you were absolutely taking the mick. Wow. This is unreal,” Robertson said as he looked into the camera.

And the 43-year-old tagged Williams in the caption as he wrote: “I thought you were lying!!!”

Robertson returned to the social media platform on New Year’s Eve as he posted a picture of himself basking in sunshine at the top of a mountain.

And he wrote: “What an absolute privilege and something that my sport has given me I’ll never take for granted with the journeys it takes me on. Incredible views here in Tibet.” He then added an emoji of a red heart.

Robertson was joined up the mountain by Williams, with one snap showing the duo sitting next to each other.

And in a video shared by Robertson, the 2025 World Snooker Championship runner-up was jokingly asked: “They must have paid you really good to come up here.” And Williams cheekily replied: “Get f****, put that on Instagram.”

The Welsh Potting Machine’s comment evoked plenty of laughter, before the video ended.

The Lhasa exhibitions have attracted the likes of Ronnie O’Sullivan and Judd Trump in the past. And Xizang Billiards & Snooker Association secretary-general, Weng Xiaolei, told China Daily just how important the events are.

“These visits are a huge boost,” he said. “They raise awareness, inspire young players and allow local athletes to learn by watching the very best.”