Easy for Sobhy but Rodriguez has to battle past Elias
By Alan Thatcher, Squash Mad Editor
Miguel Rodriguez and Amanda Sobhy won the individual gold medals at the Pan-American Games in Toronto.
Colombia’s Rodriguez beat Peru’s world junior champion Diego Elias in the men’s singles, while Sobhy (right) overcame American team-mate Olivia Blatchford in the women’s final.
World No.4 Rodriguez won 11-9, 3-11, 12-10, 11-8 in a fiercely contested final. World No.10 Sobhy enjoyed a more straightforward victory, winning 11-8, 11-3, 11-3 in just 16 minutes of playing time.
Unlike the Commonwealth Games, there were no play-offs for the bronze medals. Both semi-final losers in the men’s and women’s events were awarded bronze medals.
From US Squash: Super Sobhy’s busy dayÂ
Amanda Sobhy and Olivia Blatchford earned Team USA Squash’s first gold and silver medals respectively after an all-American women’s individual final Monday night at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto.
Sobhy defeated her fellow 22-year-old compatriot 11-8, 11-3, 11-3, to win her first Pan American Games gold medal, while Blatchford also collects a Pan Ams first with her silver medal.
Sobhy endured the busiest day of all squash competitors having won two women’s doubles matches prior to her individual final with partner Natalie Grainger.
Sobhy and Grainger upset the bracket seedings to eliminate second-seeded Colombia’s Catalina Pelaez and Laura Tovar in the semi-finals.
Sobhy and Grainger are poised to add gold or silver to Team USA Squash’s medal haul Tuesday night against Canada’s Samantha Cornett and Nikole Todd.
While the women’s individual final was contested on the singles glass court, Team USA men’s doubles partnership Chris Hanson and Chris Gordon were consigned to Bronze medals on the softball doubles court, losing against Canada’s Andrew and Graeme Schnell in the semi-finals.
The Canadians will contest the men’s doubles final against Colombia’s Andres Herrera and Juan Vargas Tuesday evening.
Colombia will bring home at least one squash gold medal after Miguel Angel Rodriguez defeated fellow Pan-Ams flag bearer Diego Elias of Peru in the men’s individual final.
Preliminary Team play commences Tuesday morning once team seedings are calculated based on the individual results, while the men’s and women’s doubles finals are slated for Tuesday evening.