The movement for Olympic Bid for Squash get another discussion platform as Christina Rees, who’s member of UK Parliament and former Welsh number one Squash Player, has urged the British government to take action for the sport. She delivered a paper “Squash and the Olympic Games” for discussion at the UK Houses of Parliament in London today.
Speaking on the paper, Rees started her statement with “Many people are surprised to learn that squash is not an Olympic sport; they assume that it has been in the Olympics for many years, Sadly, that is not the case.”
Further she added about her favorite sport, “Squash is gladiatorial, dynamic, physically demanding and mentally challenging; it is like chess on legs. It teaches players strategy, tactics and how to outmaneuver an opponent, so it is an ideal grounding for a political career. Squash is a sport for life!”
Rees had a decent success at the sport with becoming the international player for her country Wales within the first six months with Squash. She went on to become the country’s number one Squash player in a career where she had more than 100 outings. Further she went on to coaching in 2004 and is the only female UKCC Level 3 in Wales; and is the only squash coach to have received the Sport Wales Female Coach of the Year Award.
Disappointed with the Olympic journey of this sport, she said, “Why is squash not in the Olympics? It is a complete mystery to me. Squash is a genuinely global sport that is played by millions of people all over the world. There have been male and female world champions from every continent. Last year, 47 countries hosted professional senior tour events, featuring players from 74 nations. We now have over 50,000 courts in more than 185 nations, from the Arctic Circle to the bottom tips of South America and Australia.”
Responding to her, Tracey Crouch, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, said: “There is no doubt that the case to include squash as a future Olympic sport has been made with great passion and conviction today.”
Further she added, “Squash is indeed an exciting, dynamic sport and it has a rich heritage in this country.
“There is certainly a case to be made that such an innovative and exciting sport should be able to grace the world’s biggest stage.”
These discussions and citing at various debating platforms will give confidence to the World Squash Federation, the apex squash body which is pressing hard to get this integration done without many positives as of not.
Delighted by this governmental hearing, WSF President N Ramachandran said: “It’s good to know that our case to try to secure a place for squash on the Olympic Games programme is being made at parliamentary level.”
Adding further, he said, “We continue to believe that squash is a great fit for the Olympics and dream of the time when the Games could become the pinnacle aspiration for all our athletes.”