Organisers eye more foreign players in Borneo Junior Squash C’ship

KUCHING: Organisers are confident that the annual Borneo Junior Open Squash Championship will attract even more overseas participation in July next year at Sarawak Squash Centre in Petra Jaya.

Such optimism was articulated by Squash Racquet Association of Sarawak (SRAS) president Robert Lau upon the conclusion of the 3rd edition which attracted over 200 young players from 11 countries namely Australia, Egypt, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia in their press statement yesterday.

The five-day event was organised by SRAS with the support from Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports through Sarawak Sports Corporation and Sarawak Sports Council with Cahya Mata Sarawak Berhad group as the main sponsor.

Malaysian players in this year’s event came from Wilayah Persekutuan, Selangor, Kedah, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Perak, Penang, Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak.

Lau, who is also president of the South East Asia Squash Federation (SEASF), paid a special tribute to Cahya Mata Sarawak Berhad (CMS) and its group managing director Dato Richard Curtis for their support towards the tournament which is part of the Sarawak Squash Development Programme.

Meanwhile, the closing and prize presentation ceremony for this year’s championship was officiated by Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Sarawak permanent secretary Datu Ik Pahon Joyik who was accompanied by Sarawak Sports Council director Dr Ong Kong Swee.

Ong, who is also Sarawak Sports Corporation CEO, spoke on Sarawak’s thrust to host more international sporting events.

“It is always important for us to organise any sporting event with the highest quality of standards because Sarawak is no stranger in hosting international events and of course there will be more similar events to be held locally as we have the facilities to become the best host there is,” he said.