BRITISH OPEN SQUASH NEWS New Era Beckons For British Open England Squash, the country's governing body for the sport, announces today (Tuesday 04 February) that it has entered into an agreement to license the rights to the British Open Squash Championships to a partnership formed by John Beddington of Beddington Sports Management Ltd and John Nimick of Event Engine, Inc. The British Open has long been regarded as the sport's most prestigious championship, but inconsistent management and sponsorship woes have plagued the tournament in recent years. The new license agreement covers a three year period commencing 2003 and includes an option period for a further three years. Nick Rider, Chief Executive of England Squash, said: "The British Open has a long and distinguished history - it is intrinsically linked with the great names of the sport. This is the way forward - I am very excited by the prospect of this agreement with a partnership comprising two of the most experienced and successful practitioners in event management today." The partnership of Beddington and Nimick brings together possibly the two most successful commercial squash promoters to have worked in the sport. Beddington, whose company is based in London, launched the PIA World Series of Squash - the first professionally-coordinated international squash circuit - in the 1970's, promoting the likes of Jonah Barrington, Geoff Hunt, Qamar Zaman and other then dominant champions; and organized the annual Canadian Open in Toronto throughout the 1980's and early 1990's. Beddington's credentials in professional tennis are even more extensive and include management of the Grand Prix circuit in Europe and the Grand Prix Masters Championships; directorship of Tennis Canada's operations for 17 years, a period in which he elevated both the men's and women's Canadian Opens in Toronto and Montreal to Super 9 [Masters Series] and Tier I status respectively; and now promotion of the annual Honda Challenge at the Royal Albert Hall - the flagship event on the Champions Tour. John Nimick is the only multi-event promoter of professional squash working in the sport today. His sports marketing firm based in Boston, USA, operates three of the current top ten world ranking men's events including the Tournament of Champions in Grand Central Terminal, New York (which also includes a top ten WISPA draw); the U.S. Open in Boston's Symphony Hall; and the Canadian Open in Toronto's BCE Place. Nimick started Event Engine in late 1999 after a seven-year stint managing the men's Professional Squash Association and its World Tour. Nimick has a long history in the sport having won two North American Open Squash Championships and reached a world hardball ranking of #2 in the 1980's while representing the United States twice internationally in the World Team Championships. "John and I are delighted with England Squash's decision to offer us the opportunity to be involved with the British Open and we are confident that we can rebuild this wonderful championship. We have no magic up our sleeves, but we both have a deep passion for this great sport. We have created a long term agreement with England Squash precisely because we feel it may take several years before we can rebuild the tournament's value and generate the kind of sponsorship support that will allow the Open to regain the respect of the players and the international community," said Beddington. Nimick added: "We are at work on a few scenarios for a potential presentation of the event in late 2003, but our priority is to set the right wheels in motion for the future so that each year builds successfully upon the last. We look forward to coordinating with both PSA and WISPA to ensure that both sets of professional players are kept informed of our progress and to listen to any ideas either association may have about the event in the short term."