Out of nowhere a champion – by Sue Martin Downhill

EVERY for to six weeks Racquets Fitness Centre runs a one-day Junior Squash Tournament. New and experienced junior players from the club are encouraged to enter. We see great changes in the juniors from one tournament to the next.

Cameron Law was one such example. Cameron played in his first one-day tournament in January of this year. He played in a group of players all of similar standard where he struggled, finishing near the bottom of the section.

For the past two months with regular coaching from Roger Ridler and joining in the group coaching sessions on a Monday every week, Cameron has worked hard and with dedication has gained in confidence and playing ability.

Cameron played on Saturday, March 18, in the second level of standard. He showed all the other players what a great style and understanding of the game can achieve. Cameron won all of his games. Many of the games were close but Cameron’s strong mind set this time round meant he came out on top in every match. Alex Glover and Thomas Taylor were both notable in their attempt to derail Cameron’s win but were unsuccessful.

Well done Cameron !!

The lower grade included eight of the newest Racquets Academy kids. From St Josephs and John Hampden primary schools we saw plenty of extremely close matches. Joe Johnson and Artie Shrimpton fell to the floor at the end of their first place final match because it was such a long and hard fought contest. Joe came out on top in a perfectly spirited competitive game. Allegra Michopoulou, the only girl in the competition, fought well to come in third.

In the top grade the visitors, Sam Crowley and Alex Smith from Abingdon took the top places. But Dryw McLaren and Silas Glover put up excellent fights.

The Racquets Academy has two places available at the moment for any Year 5 or 6 children who want to take up a sport and have the opportunity to excel in it. Please contact sue@racquets-fitness-centre.com if you might be interested. If you’re looking for a sport just for fun then please come along to any of our squash lessons available throughout the week.