Squash Canada Announces Squad for 2017 WSF World Junior Squash Championships

Squash Canada has announced the team of four Junior Women and one Junior Man who will represent Canada at the 2017 WSF World Junior Squash Championships, held in Tauranga, New Zealand from the July 19-29, which features both Women’s and Men’s Individual events, as well as the Women’s Team event. Two of the four girls will hail from Ontario! See the Squash Canada press release below:

The Canadian Junior Women’s Team is comprised of Emma Jinks, Andrea Toth, Nicole Kendall, and Charlotte Orcutt. All four will compete in the World Junior Women's Individual event as well as in the team event. Salaheldin Eltorgman is the sole representor of Canada in the Men’s individual event.

The process involved in building the team included two automatic selections for the highest ranked players in the nation. The remaining two spots were determined in the World Junior Women Team Trials. Emma and Andrea earned the automatic selections, while Charlotte and Nicole rounded out the team after their performances at the trials.

For those who are unfamiliar, here are the essentials about each of the highly-talented crop of young Canadians who will represent Canada in New Zealand:

17-year-old, Emma Jinks (Stratford, PEI) – Jinks appears to be prepared for the international limelight after three years of complete dominance on the Canadian junior circuit. She most recently was crowned champion in the U19 division at the 2017 Canadian Junior Championship. Prior to the U19 title, Jinks captured the U17 Champion in 2016 and U15 Champion in 2015. The Prince Edward Island native has been making waves, the most impressive feat however, is that Jinks has done it all by the age of 16.  This tournament marks the first time she will compete at a World Championship, which she will kick off in the second-round of the individual tournament with a match against Malaysia’s Aifa Azman. 

17-year-old, Nicole Kendall (Newmarket, ON) – A perennial contender on the Canadian circuit, Kendall gets a chance to go toe-to-toe with some fantastic competition on the international level. She has been a member of Team Canada’s Battle of the Border roster for the past two years, last year playing an integral part in the Canadian victory over Team USA.  After receiving a bye in the first round of the tournament, Kendall also draws USA’s Laila Sedky.

16-year-old Charlotte Orcutt (Toronto, ON) – Fresh from winning a national title in the U17 division of the 2017 Canadian Junior Championship, Orcutt is the youngest member of the team, being named to the team less than a month after her sixteenth birthday. Orcutt is in fine form after winning her first national title, ready to soak in the experience of an international event providing significant experience for the rising star. The Toronto-native will take on Fanny Segers of France in the second-round of the Individual tournament, to kick off her experience in New Zealand.

17-year-old Andrea Toth (Richmond, BC) – One year removed from winning the 2016 Girl’s U17 Canadian Junior Open, Toth was the U19 finalist in this year’s Canadian Junior Championships. Due to her strong showing over the past year, Toth earned herself an automatic selection to don the red and white in New Zealand. In the first round of the individual tournament, she has drawn a fellow North American in Elle Ruggiero of the US, which promises to be an exciting match to kick off the tournament.

14-year-old Salaheldin Eltorgman (Toronto, ON) – Eltorgman has had a great international run this past competitive season playing his way to the third-round of the Boys U15 event of the British Junior Open in January.  After competing hard and winning his first two matches, Eltorgman went toe-to-toe with the tournament’s second seed Karim Abelalim Elbarbary of Egypt, ultimately losing a hard-fought match 3-1. At only 14 years old, Eltorgman is primed to be a national force for years to come, an international experience such as the World Junior Individuals event can become essential to his development going forward. Eltorgman’s first matchup comes against Saudi Arabia’s Eid Alotaibi, who is three years his senior. 

Veteran coach Richard Yendell will guide the team once again, hoping to improve upon the team’s fifth place finish in 2015, the second highest in Canadian history.

Some of the fantastic competition present at the event includes five-time consecutive champion and 2017 favourites Egypt, amongst other strong nations. Despite this, Squash Canada’s Head Coach feels the 2017 team is full of promise and young talent ready to compete at the top level.

“Emma, Nicole, Andrea and Charlotte are great young Canadian stars who will greatly benefit from the experience of competing at a World Championship.” he said.  “Each one of them have had a great season, capturing multiple Canadian titles between them, and I look forward to watching them develop and mature on the international stage.”

“We may be one of the younger teams, but the girls are strong and ready to hit the court.”

Squash Canada wishes Nicole, Andrea, Emma, Charlotte, and Salaheldin the best of luck in New Zealand. We are sure they will make Canada proud.

Stay connected to Team Canada throughout the WSF World Junior Championships this July: