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 Australian Open Squash Championships
Clare, Australia
By Andrew Dent
Squash Australia Media Liaison Officer
The wine growing town of Clare in South Australia is a hive of activity this week as it prepares to welcome some of the world’s best squash players for the Clare Valley Australian Open later this month.
This year’s Open, from July 28-August 3, is shaping as one of the best in years, with a large men’s field headed by four-time British Open champion David Palmer and the women’s draw featuring top 20 players Kasey Brown of Taree in New South Wales and New Zealander Jaclyn Hawkes.
 Australian Open spokesman Grant Norman said a team of workers and volunteers was putting the final touches to the all-glass court in the town’s indoor stadium, while another team would be erecting the seating later this week. “We’ll be ready for our first lead-in tournament (the South Australian Country Championships) starting Friday,” he said.
This year’s Open has attracted a far larger field than the 2007 event, which was the first time in history the Australian Open was held outside a capital city.
The women’s draw has a full 12-person qualifying field, while such is the interest in the men’s event that organisers have been forced to organise pre-qualifying in Adelaide for four places in the main qualifying tournament in Clare. Four players from each qualifying event will progress to the main draw.
Norman said the Australian Open would benefit the town of Clare economically, with motels already heavily booked for the duration of the tournament.
 “The town has really got behind the Australian Open again this year,” Norman said. “We’ve got a group of volunteers ready to go into the schools next week to organise player visits, which were really popular last year. “We’ve also organised for the school classes to come down during the day to watch the matches.”
Norman said the South Australian Government had given organisers some funding for local promotional activity, while the Clare and Gilbert Valley Shire Council had also given the tournament the use of the Valleys Lifestyle Centre as a venue, as well as a substantial cash grant.
But he said the most lasting benefit was the upsurge of interest in squash in Clare, which experienced a surge after last year’s tournament and which now has 49 juniors in its program.
“We noticed more people playing after last year’s tournament and our junior program is now the equal of anything in Adelaide,” Norman said.
Key Facts and Figures
Dates
July 31-August 3 (pre-qualifying July 28; qualifying July 29-30)
Venue
Valleys Lifestyle Centre, Clare
Men - Seeded players
1-David Palmer (New South Wales)
2-Chris Ryder (England)
3-Kashif Shuja (New Zealand)
4-Aaron Frankcomb (Tasmania)
5-Scott Arnold (New South Wales)
6-Ryan Cuskelly (New South Wales)
7-Bradley Hindle (Queensland)
8-Khawaja Adil Maqbool (Pakistan)
Women - Seeded players
1-Kasey Brown (New South Wales)
2-Jaclyn Hawkes (New Zealand)
3-Donna Urquhart (New South Wales)
4-Christina Mak (Hong Kong)
5-Amelia Pittock (Victoria)
6-Lisa Camilleri (Queensland)
7-Annie Au (Hong Kong)
8-Joelle King (New Zealand)
Countries represented
Australia, New Zealand, England, Hong Kong, Pakistan, South Africa, United Arab Emirates
Official Tournament Website
http://www.squashsa.asn.au/CVSquashFestival.htm
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