EUROPEAN SQUASH NEWS
Estonia Hosts First International Squash Championship
Estonian Squash has announced details of the first International tournament
to be held in the country. The Estonia-Fenestra Open, which will be held in
Tallinn from 28-30 March, will offer a prize fund of 10,000 Euro.
The organisers are hoping to attract some world class players to participate
and show some top class squash to local enthusiasts. The organisers hope
that this first event will grow in future years and help to establish Estonia
on the international squash scene.
Chris Stahl, President of the European Squash Federation (ESF), said that he
is delighted that squash is steadily growing in Central Europe and that the
tournament scene is also developing well. "Although the Estonia Open is not
a PSA event, it is a milestone for Estonian squash and will help to promote
squash in Estonia," Stahl explained.
"The Russian Championships recently took place in St Petersburg, while the
first Latvian Championships - with Men's, Women's, Boys and Girls sections
featuring entries from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Italy and UK - were held
at the beginning of the month at a new centre with five courts just opened in
Liepaja on the Baltic Coast," added Stahl. "Furthermore, the Slovak
Championships are being held in Bratislava from 21-23 March."
During his first term as ESF President, Stahl has visited Estonia, Yugoslavia
and, with the assistance of grant aid from the World Squash Federation (WSF),
Russia and more recently Latvia. Based in Warsaw, he has also been
personally involved in the development of squash in Poland, Ukraine and the
other Baltic states. During visits to these countries, he himself competed
in tournaments in St Petersburg (Russia), Tallinn (Estonia), Liepaja (Latvia)
and Warsaw and Lodz (Poland).
Further details of the Estonia-Fenestra Open can be found on
www.squash.ee/open2003