Squash students at the Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence completed another successful leg of their European tour with strong performances in the competitive Welsh Junior Open this month.
Last year’s runner up Abdullah Al Tamimi, competing in the Under-13 category, once again narrowly missed out on the title after breezing to the final. In the show piece event Abdullah’s opponent took full advantage of a slightly below par performance from the current Arab Champion in his age group to deny him another crown with some excellent squash.
Virtually every player from ASPIRE improved on performances at the same competition this time last year. Players from all across the United Kingdom, and as far a field as Hong Kong and Egypt were present at what has long been established as a key international youth tournament. Indeed, the number of entrants was up on last year, creating a tougher environment in which the young squash players were nonetheless able to shine.
ASPIRE Head Coach, former world champion Geoff Hunt, was ‘pleased with how all the boys had performed in such competitive circumstances’.
Abdullah’s brother, Ahmad Al Tamimi produced some high quality squash as he improved on last year’s 19th place finish in the Under-15 age group with three wins out of five matches securing him 10th this time around.
Omar Abdulla Ahmed and Khalid Alhandawi both finished outside the top 15 in the Under-15 age group, coming up against much bigger and physically stronger opponents though Ahmed’s game was greatly improved on his play in the recent Flemish Junior Championships.
A recent move up the divisions to the Under-19 category for Mohammed Masoud was always going to prove a challenge but he recorded a first round victory and won a further game on route to a creditable 15th place finish in the standings.
Masoud was, according to Hunt, ‘perhaps the stand-out performer at the competition from ASPIRE, as he finished in a better position this year than last, despite being in a higher age group. I was very pleased with his play in Wales, especially winning his last match after trailing two games to love.’
About ASPIRE
ASPIRE, the Academy for Sports Excellence, Doha, was created with the dual aims of identifying and transforming promising student athletes into world renowned champions across a wide range of sports and to act as a beacon to draw sporting culture into the centre of life in Qatar and the surrounding region.
The Academy is distinguished by a philosophy which aims to develop the whole student, providing them with full academic, social and sporting development.
Unrivalled facilities mark the Academy out as one of the world’s foremost sporting and educational institutions, and entice an ever increasing number of visitors from across the spectrum of world sports to use or simply view them. These same facilities will also play host to events during the forthcoming Asian Games 2006.
With one indoor and seven outdoor football pitches, athletics tracks, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, diving pool, combat arenas, gymnastics arena, specially designed weight rooms, lecture halls, dormitories to accommodate what will eventually become 1,000 students, a medical centre and more besides, much beneath the world’s largest purpose built indoor sports dome, every aspect of the development of elite athletes is catered for. ASPIRE is a place for those who dare to dream.
ASPIRE TODAY, INSPIRE TOMORROW
www.aspire.qa
