Thu 29th Day ONE : Qualifying
It was a busy opening night at ESC
with 15 men's qualifiers and 8 first round qualifying matches in
the women's event.
There wa home success in both events as local favourites
Senga Macfie and Lauren Gray both won tough matches
in the WSA qualifiers, while in the BSPA matches home boys
Alan Tasker, James Jacobsen, Rory Stewart, Iain Stewart, Chris
Gray and tournament director Simon Boughton were
among the winners.
Quote of the day: "You are UNIQUE" says Ross McHoul
as he tins a sitter on his way to losing the last match of the
day in five.
Check the DRAW page and
TWITTER for results and a few
photos.
Preview
Daryl Selby, from
Harlow, ranked 13 in the world, will be back to defend his title
at the 2015 Edinburgh Open, the biggest tournament on the BSPA
circuit and squash event in Scotland, with a prize fund of £10k,
running from Thu 29th January until Sunday 1st February.
Running alongside the Men's BSPA and Women's WSA
Edinburgh Open is the Club’s annual Graded Squash
Championship.
 The
men’s draw is headed by defending champion Selby, who will be
aiming to win it for the fifth time.
Seeded to meet him in the
final is South African Shaun Le Roux, a previous winner
in 2012. Jaymie Haycocks from Shrewsbury and Eddie
Charlton from Nottingham are seeded 3/4, with both expected
to make the semi-finals.
Local interest sees Edinburgh Sports Club member Dougie
Kempsell seeded 5/8, who is aiming to go one better than the
quarter final stage which he reached last year.
Scottish
Commonwealth Games players Greg Lobban and Kevin Moran
are also seeded 5/8 and both hoping to progress to, at the
least, the quarter-finals.
The women’s event, which is the only WSA event in the country,
is headed by Lucie Fiavola from the Czech Republic and
Austrian Birgit Coufal, who are seeded to meet in the
final.
Local players Senga Macfie, Sue Dalrymple, Elspeth Young,
Claire Gadbsy and Kirsty Lobban will compete in the
qualifying round in the hope of making the main draw.
Simon Boughton, Tournament Director at Edinburgh Sports
Club said:
“Since its inaugural event in 2001 the Championship has become a
firm fixture on the international squash calendar and the
strength of the draw continues to amaze me. It is rare to have
squash of this level on our doorstep and anyone with an interest
in the game should come along and enjoy this spectacular event.
It is also a great chance to see how our top local players fare
against those at the top of the world game.”
The Graded event, which is also in its 14th year, will see over
100 competitors from all over the UK rubbing shoulders with the
top professionals.
Jonathan Tait, Club Manager at Edinburgh Sports Club,
said:
“I am absolutely delighted with this year’s entries. The event
continues to attract some of the world’s highest ranked
professional players, giving spectators a fantastic opportunity
to watch squash at the highest level being played over a
four-day period in both The Open and Graded Championships.”
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