England Squash News
England Unveils Strongest Ever Defence of European Squash Titles
With a men's squad led by a world No1 for the first time, and the women's
featuring four players in the world's top ten, England will field its
strongest ever teams in defence of its titles in the 2003 European Squash
Championships.
The prestigious Championships, being staged in England for the first time in
25 years, will be held at Nottingham Squash Rackets Club from 01-04 May. The
staging marks the 30th anniversary of the championships which were first held
in Edinburgh in 1973.
Led by the London-based world No1 and British National Champion Peter Nicol,
the England men's squad will include Lee Beachill (Yorkshire), Mark Chaloner
(Lincolnshire), Simon Parke (Yorkshire) and, making his senior debut,
19-year-old World Junior Champion James Willstrop (Yorkshire).
The women's squad, also announced today (Thursday 03 April) at Nottingham
Squash Club, will feature Linda Charman (Sussex), Tania Bailey
(Lincolnshire), Cassie Jackman (Norfolk) and Rebecca Macree (Essex).
This will be the first time that Peter Nicol, who celebrates his 30th
birthday on Saturday, has been eligible to compete in the European
Championships since famously 'defecting' from Scotland two years ago. Nicol
and Lee Beachill claimed England's only squash gold medal in last summer's
Commonwealth Games in Manchester, winning the Men's Doubles title.
Pontefract-based Beachill, who last year became the first man to claim
back-to-back National Championships titles, will be making his comeback in
Nottingham after undergoing ankle surgery last month.
Simon Parke celebrates his tenth England appearance in the European
Championships since making his debut as a 17-year-old in 1990. Raised in
Harrogate and now based in Nottingham, the former world No3 has returned to
the world top 20 after a successful comeback following ankle surgery which
caused him to miss the 2002 championships.
Lee Beachill's Pontefract club mate James Willstrop, the youngest player to
earn senior England selection since county colleague Simon Parke in 1990,
crowned a magnificent junior career in December when he won the World Junior
title in India. Impressive victories over two world top twenty players saw
him reach the semi-finals of the British National Championships in February,
where he fell to the eventual champion Peter Nicol.
Cassie Jackman's selection marks the new England number one's 12th European
Championships' appearance since making her England debut in 1990. The former
world No1 and world champion from Norwich has made a remarkable recovery from
a second career-threatening back operation last September, and in February
secured a record-equalling fourth British National title.
England National Coach David Pearson is upbeat about England's prospects in
Nottingham: "We have a hugely experienced squad and I am confident that both
teams will retain their titles - but we are far from complacent as the
competition gets tougher each year," said Pearson, himself five-times a
European Championships competitor.
"Our toughest opponents in the men's event will be France, no doubt, but this
year we have Peter Nicol for the first time and he will certainly strengthen
our squad," Pearson pointed out.
"Following his outstanding run in the Nationals and then in the Tournament of
Champions in New York, young James Willstrop has emphatically earned his
senior debut on merit - and it's good to have Simon Parke available again,
especially at his home club in Nottingham. He has the heart of a lion when
he wears an England shirt!
"Despite never having been beaten in the history of the event, the women's
team are highly motivated to maintain this excellent record. Cassie has
shown incredible determination to get back to her current position after back
surgery only six months ago, and Becky Macree is playing better than ever and
thoroughly deserves her European Championships' debut," Pearson added.
In the closest men's final on record, England beat France last year on games
countback after drawing 2-2 in the best-of-four tie in Germany. It was the
men's tenth successive win and the 27th since the inaugural competition in
1973. By contrast, England beat first-time finalists Scotland 3-0 in the
women's final, coming through the tournament without conceding a single game
to claim their 26th consecutive title.