Professional Squash Association's Sarawak Open

Junior Development in Sarawak
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updated 28 April 1998

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The next Junior Ladder will start the 2nd - 3rd MAY. Open for Junior players aged from 10-18. For social players this is a way for youths to improve their game, meet with squash friends in a competitive way, keep fit and have some fun - a break away from studies!! We encourage all teenage squashers to come and play. The games are played on the weekend either on Saturday or Sunday. The cost is RM25 for the ladder event which runs for 6 weeks. For those wanting to join the closing date for entry is 26th April. Please contact Susan Teal on 241354(o) or Sim 019-8887728 for enrollment form. You will be made very welcome!!

Sportexcel 2nd leg will be on 10-12 April and there are 8 players attending, 2 officials and 1 parent. We have found out in this leg will be some International players so it will be of interest to see how the Sarawak boys do this time. Kenneth Liew, Kimlee Wong, Gabriel Ting and Donald Ting and girls :- Caroline Fong, Jo-ann Jee, June Tiong and Grace Toh

Junior training is going on under the guidance of Head coach Paul Moa and Juliet Martin as the Development Officer and the coaches Justin Ho and Mr. Sim. For children who are keen to learn there are coaching sessions going on during the week. The fee is RM50.00 per month. Our coaches have produced some of the new young squash players training in Kuala Lumpur like Azlan Karlsberg, Daphine Ting and Geraldine Read. For young talented players there is no full time coach or development officer in Sarawak. All the people involved are dedicated part timers - These people are the backbone of our association.

SRAM is keen to involve more teachers in their junior programmes. Teachers are actively sought to help promote squash in schools for Sarawak. Teachers willing to give time to learn how to teach squash can contact Juliet Martin on 016-8883204. We are very pleased to have Mr. Justin Ho, one dedicated teacher committed to squash from St. Joseph Secondary School. He is helping in his school to run the squash club, trains juniors in the YTL programme and is one of the coaches for our young squash SUKMA team. begun. All squashers of school age are invited to join. Contact Sue on 082-241354 (o)

Highlight on some of our Sarawak Juniors

Our junior squash team went to Sukma7 on 18 April.

You can find the results at :-http://www.sukma7.com.my.

BOYS

The results : David Toh Placed 8th & Kenneth Liew placed 9th with Selangor taking the top two places: Team event Sarawak defeated by Perak 3-0 and Penang 2-1. The only match taken by young Kimlee Wong in 3rd player position .

GIRLS

The results:Grace Toh placed 6th and Jo-anne Jee placed 8th Team events Sarawak lost to Selangor and Perak 3-0

Well good exposure for the team and lets start training new talents aswell as the current players fort he coming SUKMA 2000 in Penang. Looking forward to the challenges!!

Presently from Sarawak we have three players in the Commonwealth squad who were chosen three years ago to leave home and join the programme under the best coaches in Malaysia. Mohamed Azlan, Daphine Ting and Geraldine Read have been studying and training at Bukit Jalil and have competed consistently in all local and many international events

Azlan has finished Form 3 at Bukit Jalil and has an impressive lists of wins since 1996. He has competed Internationally in the British Open 1996 in the under 14 he was runner up, World Junior 1996 placed 6th and Hong Kong Junior 1996 was 9th. He was the Scottish Open 1996 under 16 champion and Australian Open 1996 under 15 champion. This year in the British open under 16 he went to the 2nd round and he was Champion in the Asian under 16 by winning over India's Parth Doshi and in the Hong Kong Open Under 19 title when he beat Ritwick Bhattacharya. In 1998 he is French U19 Champion and two junior events in Britain. Azlan has been successful in being sponsored by Sarawak Securities for 1998.

One year older than Azlan Daphine Ting used to follow her father to play squash since the early age of 8. She was good at sports in Primary school and started playing squash seriously at 10 under the coaching of Paul Moe. At that time there were six in that batch of juniors to train at the Sarawak Club. Of those Azlan, Daphine and Geraldine kept up with the interest. Daphine is a talented player who enjoys her training and the travelling. Her recent trip to Rio de Janeiro was very successful with the Junior Women coming in third in the team event. In August she cause an upset by winning the Malaysian Under 19 title from Dianne Desira.

Azlan and Ong Beng Hee are training in Scotland with the couch off the current world number one Peter Nicols. The boys will be there until July when they will resume their preparation for the Commonwealth games in September.