Egypt will host the 2025 World Squash Junior Championships, following ratification by the WSF board.
The championships, which will be contested at New Cairo’s Black Ball Sporting Club from July 20-01 August, will feature men’s and women’s individual and team events, following record entries at this year’s edition in Houston, USA, which was the first World Juniors to feature simultaneous men’s and women’s team championships.
The North African nation completed a historic clean sweep at this year’s World Juniors, as Amina Orfi and Mohamed Zakaria won the individual events and the women’s and men’s squads won the team events.
WSF President Zena Wooldridge said: “It’s a really exciting time for squash and very appropriate to be heading back to Egypt following the highly successful 2022 Women’s World Team Championship, and to Black Ball as an ideal venue for the World Juniors.
“We know Egypt is crazy about squash, unrivalled in the world, and no doubt the Egyptian home crowd will be anticipating their young performers following in the footsteps of the many Egyptian legends of our sport. Young players’ ambitions are also now fuelled by the prospect of a future Olympics, further raising the bar on the incredible standard of junior squash.
“Black Ball is a great venue with a world-famous pedigree, hosting national championships and top-class professional events. My thanks to Minister Dr Ashraf Sobhy for his ongoing support for squash, to Black Ball CEO Mohamed Raef, Egyptian Squash Federation President Assem Khalifa and the teams behind each of them.”
Mohamed Raef said: “I am reminded of a phrase that I have always admired, which describes Black Ball Club perfectly: ‘The Egyptian Temple of Squash,’ a title inspired by the grandeur of ancient Egyptian temples.
“The Black Ball team is composed of passionate professionals who are dedicated to delivering this event in a manner worthy of the sport of squash and the esteemed status of Egypt, which has earned a distinguished and prominent place on the global stage in recent years. All participants and squash enthusiasts will be warmly welcomed, and we will spare no effort to ensure their comfort and satisfaction.”