Pro darts player blames bad soap in toilet for losing game

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Darts player Josh Rock jokingly blamed the soap he used in Antwerp, Belgium, for his loss to Michael van Gerwen, a famous darts competitor.

Success in darts, like any sport, depends on a lot of things working together. Players all prefer different types of darts, varying in size, weight, and grip. What works for a top player won’t necessarily work for everyone else, so finding what suits you is key.

Top ten darts player Josh Rock faced an unusual challenge during his match against world number four Michael Van Gerwen: hand soap. It seems something as simple as soap became an issue for him during the game.

After losing 6-2 to Van Gerwen, the Northern Irish player jokingly blamed a pre-match bathroom break. He explained to BBC Sport that he washed his hands with soap right before going on stage and immediately knew it would affect his game. He felt the soapy hands would cause problems and predicted a poor performance.

Darts star Josh Rock “couldn’t grip” because of soap

Rock said he’d never experienced anything like it before, and it completely threw off his game with the darts.

He explained that this had never happened before, and he believed it was due to the soap used in the toilet at the Antwerp stop. He thought it stripped the oils from his finger, causing him to lose his grip.

I realized I couldn’t get a good grip with my hands. I tried everything – licking my fingers and rubbing them against the barrel to roughen them up – but nothing worked, so I had to give up on that attempt.

The professional darts player, a five-time tournament winner who also reached the last 16 at the world championships, said he found the situation amusing when he understood what had occurred.

This wasn’t the first recent embarrassing incident in sports. The Oshawa Generals, a Canadian hockey team, had to apologize to their fans after jokingly suggesting they shower before games. Fans responded by showing up to games wearing bathrobes, shower caps, and even scrubbing brushes as a playful protest.

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2026-02-19 15:20