September 7, 2011
John White Joins WSF Ambassador Programme In Latvia
Former world number one John White will join Nicol David, the reigning women’s world number one from Malaysia, in the inaugural WSF Ambassador Programme in Latvia in November.
The first WSF Ambassador Programme – an international promotional initiative devised by the World Squash Federation – will visit the Latvian capital Riga from November 25-27, when White and David will be joined by a top international coach and referee to highlight the appeal of Squash to the public and the media.
While the players will integrate with the local squash community and media, referees and coaches from Latvia and neighbouring countries will be invited to attend workshops that will enable them to take home a reach seam of information and techniques.
Born in Australia, White was a Scottish international from 1999 to 2006 and led his country to a best-ever fourth-place finish in the 2001 World Team Championship. Widely-known as the hardest-hitter of the ball – a shot recorded at 172 miles per hour remains a world record – he enjoyed a highly successful career on the international circuit. Runner-up in the British Open and World Open in 2002, he topped the world rankings in March 2004 and went on to win 13 PSA World Tour titles from 32 final appearances before retiring in 2009. White, 38, is now based in the USA where he is Head Coach at Drexel University in Philadelphia.
The venue in Riga will be the Zelta Bowling and Squash Center, an imposing squash facility featuring eight courts and many other sporting and leisure options.
The coaching workshops will be undertaken by Ronny Vlasseks, a highly-experienced European Squash Federation Tutor who is also the Head Coach of the Dutch and Belgian national squash teams. Meanwhile, looking after the refereeing side will be Scotsman Ian Allanach, a former WSF top referee and now a worldwide refereeing assessor.
It is planned that the visit to Latvia will be followed by two further WSF Ambassador Programme initiatives in 2012.