Mason Smith makes history to win gold medal at Caribbean Squash Championships
Nine-year old Mason Smith wrote his own piece of history when he became Bermuda’s first under-11 boys champion at the Junior Caribbean Squash Championships in St Vincent & the Grenadines.
In an all-Bermuda final, Smith defeated his compatriot Ben Sherratt 3-0 (16-14, 11-8, 11-7) to win the island’s first gold medal at the championships since 2012, when Dylan Pratt and Noah Browne were crowned individual champions in the under-13 and under-19 age groups in Jamaica.
Micah Franklin, head of squash at the Bermuda Squash Racquets Association, is coaching the youngsters at the tournament alongside Anaya Smith and he is delighted with the performances of his two young stars.
“It was a fantastic final that showed sportsmanship, friendship and emotions,’’ Franklin said.
“They played fantastically well and I am very proud of them. Mason Smith is the first Bermuda under-11 winner we've ever had and he is the first winner in more than a decade.
“I am very optimistic for the future of our squash team. All of them are only nine, which is amazing and they still have another year left in that age group. The future is looking bright for the sport.
There were also silver medals for Owen Rosorea in the boys under-15 division and Somers Stevenson in the girls’ under-15, while sisters McKenna Kyme and Taylor Kyme picked up bronze in the girls under-11 and girls under-13 divisions respectively.
Andrew Cox finished fourth in the boys’ under-17 division to complete the list of Bermudians who reached the semi-finals, with Franklin pleased with the levels of commitment and quality on show.
“I am very excited for all the players,’’ Franklin said.
“They performed well in very hot, loud and tough conditions on the courts and they all handled it very well, so I am very proud of them and I am incredibly excited for the future prospects of squash in Bermuda.”
With the singles tournaments now completed, the competition has now moved to five days of doubles play, with Franklin describing his squad’s participation as more of an experimen as the championships build to a conclusion on July 23.
“Doubles squash is fairly new to us and fairly new to the sport, so it's a bit of a trial to see how it goes,’’ Franklin said.
“We have teams in the boys, girls and mixed pairings. After those two days, we then move to the team portion of the trip.”
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