Surge of healthy interest sparks revival of the forgotten racquet sport

16-Jan-2012 - Darren Barclay - AAP

REPRINT - Sydney Morning Herald 2nd January (and numerous other outlets)

THE age of the quick fix is helping the sport of squash enjoy an unlikely renaissance, a revival that even brings a smile to tennis ace Roger Federer.

For the first time in decades, courts are being built across Australia instead of being replaced by apartments, car parks, gymnasiums and shopping centres.

"There's definitely a revival," said triple world champion Michelle Martin. "Ten centres went up around Australia last year and there's more on the horizon."

Indeed, Squash Australia reports that dozens of courts are going up in Darwin, Townsville, Bowen and Innisfail in Queensland, the Barossa Valley, western Sydney, Port Hedland, the Gold Coast for the 2018 Commonwealth Games and elsewhere.

"The sport is entering a new era where most courts will no longer be housed in standalone centres, but rather in multi-sport complexes run by local councils and not-for-profit organisations," Squash Australia boss Gary O'Donnell said. "We may never get back to the number of courts we had in the '70s and '80s, but the downward trend has at least been halted."

The rebirth is not only good news for fanatics who have sadly watched their game slowly decline from once having the second-highest tally of participants behind only netball. Martin believes it is also great news for the wellbeing of Australians.

The US business magazine Forbes in 2010 declared squash the healthiest sport of all. It asked fitness experts to score a selection of sports in four areas. Out of a possible 5 points, squash scored 4.5 for cardiorespiratory endurance, 3 for muscular strength, 3 for flexibility, the maximum 5 each for muscular endurance and for calories burned in 30 minutes and 2 for injury risk (total 22.5).

Martin and Federer, who fondly recalls playing squash with his father every Sunday while growing up in Switzerland, also endorse the game as perfect for developing hand-eye co-ordination that can be transferred to other sports.

"I'm a big believer in teaching children that hand-eye co-ordination," Martin said. "

So if you get that taught as a child from a young age . . . they've got that for life and then they'll be able to develop any sport from there."

When asked after winning the 2010 Australian Open about his squash experiences, Federer's eyes lit up.

"Those were those days," he said.

"It's very physical. I love playing with the wrist and everything. The racquet being a bit lighter and everything."

Martin added: "The fact that people are time poor, that's helped. It's very much a positive for the sport because people are just wanting a quick workout."

So squash is back, with 20 million people now playing in 185 countries.

AAP

See

• Sydney Morning Herald here
• The Australian here
• The Age here
• Mackay Mercury here
• Queensland Times (Ipswich) here
• Fraser Coast Chronicle here