The Canterbury Open took place under Covid 19 Alert Level 2 conditions over the course of Friday 11th and Saturday 12th September at the Christchurch Squash Club. With a reduced field and minimal spectators in order to comply with the 100 people capacity and social distancing measures in place, the tournament had a different look to it but that didn't prevent fantastic and competitive squash from being played.
Emma Cormack extended her Canterbury Open Women's Champion title winning run after defending match points and going on to beat Grace Hymers, while Chris can der Salm toppled Oliver Johnston in a fiery clash to be crowned the Men's Champion. Both matches going the distance to five sets, and providing the crowd in attendance with some quality entertainment on a Saturday night.
A huge thank you to Adam Teo, the tournament organiser, for running a fantastic competition within the Government guidelines and allowing another unique chapter in the history of the Canterbury Open to be written. Thanks also must go to Bruce McEachen, Paul Growcott and the wider Christchurch Squash Club for their tireless contributions and efforts in the lead up and during the tournament.
The full results are as follows:
Men's Open - Winner: Chris van der Salm Runner Up: Oliver Johnston
Women's Open - Winner: Emma Cormack Runner Up: Grace Hymers
Men's One - Winner: Tom Marshall Runner Up: Matthias Paltridge
Men's Two - Winner: Thomas Cooper Runner Up: Ray Tahana
Men's Three - Winner: Dorian Monin Runner Up: Jacob Vanner
Men's Four - Winner: Brett Phillips Runner Up: Lawrence Skurr
Men's Five - Winner: Mark O'Connor Runner Up: Mat Parson
Men's Six - Winner: Timothy Petterson Runner Up: Robert Hanson
Women's One - Winner: Liza Tonkin Runner Up: Nadia Karati
Junior Division - Winner: Tanisha Butt Runner Up: Lewis Stewart
Squash Canterbury and Christchurch Football Squash Club regret to inform all competitors and supporters that due to the Covid-19 Alert Level 2 restrictions now in place, we are postponing the Canterbury Masters, Canterbury Junior Open and Canterbury Age Groups tournaments due to be held this weekend.We apologise for any inconvenience, particularly to those who were travelling to Christchurch to participate. The hope is that all three tournaments can be rescheduled to take place later in the year.
Committee members have now been emailed with the most up to date Government and Squash New Zealand guidelines on how clubs can operate safely under Alert Level 2. These include adhering to processes around social distancing, contact tracing, maintaining high standards of hygiene and sanitisation, and table service for bar offerings.
The guidelines can be found on the Squash New Zealand website at the following link, as well as a number of other helpful resources: https://www.squashnz.co.nz/for-clubs/covid-19.cfm
For any clubs that are scheduled to host events tonight, tomorrow or Friday, you are allowed to do so if you can operate safely within the Government and Squash NZ guidelines.
In regards to the coming weeks of scheduled interclub and other competitions, we will be able to make a more informed decision in the coming days once we know whether or not the Government will extend the Level 2 period.
The situation is evolving each hour, so we will do our best to communicate clearly to you and your members. In the meantime, we appreciate your patience and understanding, and the work you are doing to keep your members safe.
In the meantime, the things that you and your fellow members can also do to help stay informed are:
- Like Squash Canterbury on Facebook (Squash Canterbury News)
- Follow Squash Canterbury on Instagram (squashcanterbury)
- Check your emails regularly for updates
- Like Squash New Zealand on Facebook (Squash New Zealand)
- Check the Squash New Zealand website regularly as the guidelines are updated
Three of our Squash Canterbury junior members were named in the New Zealand Secondary Schools (NZSS) tournament team following the completion of the NZSS Squash Championships over the weekend in Tauranga.
Those selected were:
- Leonie Marshall (Captain)
- Chris Hebbard
- Charlie Prince
Great job Leonie, Chris and Charlie, we are very proud of you!
The Squash season is nearly back and for all the restless souls out there the OXFORD CLUB is hosting their OPEN in February this year. The club has undergone many repairs since the earthquakes and is now looking in tip-top shape and is hosting this open with the hope of making their club look even better.
Oxford is a welcoming and tidy 2 court complex 30min outside of Christchurch that includes fascinating views of the Canterbury plains along the way and has the famous Sheffield pie shop just around the corner (I've been told these pies are to die for) as a great food stop.
The Oxford Open will be a great tournament for everyone and if you want to sign up then go to https://www.squash.org.nz
Here's another new initiative coming out of Squash Canterbury - the WOMENS R18 D GRADE & BELOW SERIES. Its a great opportunity for women who wants to take up squash or get playing more, to play a tournament where everyone will be of similar ability.
This is the first of 4 tournaments in the series taking place at FOOTBALL CLUB and run by Kirsty Whiteside who is a D1 herself.
To sign up go to Squash NZ - https://www.squash.org.nz
