"We had to change the rules just for him" - First darts coach of Luke Littler recalls 'The Nuke's rapid rise through the youth ranks

Luke Littler continues to make history. After becoming the youngest darts world champion ever earlier this year, the Englishman, who only turned 18 this January, recently added the UK Open to his ever-growing trophy cabinet. In the final at Butlins in Minehead on Sunday evening, 'The Nuke' was a dominant 11-2 winner over James Wade.

Now the world number two, Littler is in his second full season with the PDC in 2025. Although, as mentioned he's still only a teenager now, from an even younger age, Littler's incredible talent was clear to see in all who knew him, as the Englishman's first ever darts coach recently explained in conversation with BBC Sport.

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"I first met him when he was age 9," begins Karl Holden's tale. "Luke and his brother turned up for the darts academy. Somebody said he's quite good in the beginners group and I watched him and I was like: 'Blimey!' Within three months he was playing in the under 21s on the stage, which caused a massive problem for us because you weren't allowed on stage unless you were over 14 years old. We had to change the rules just for him."

"We started pushing him towards over forms of darts, county darts and things like that. Just trying to encourage him to perform against the men because he was just too good for the boys," Holden adds with a smile.

Luke Littler won the UK Open last weekend

Jonathan Liew, journalist with the British newspaper The Guardian also quickly became impressed with Littler. "From a really early age it was kind of an obsession. These are the years in which that talent is really anchored. His first senior trophy comes at 14 years old," he recalls. "What Luke Littler was showing at an early age was the confidence and the assurance and the poise to step up and beat guys who were often three or four times his age."

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