HOOKED ON SQUASH
Coach gets kids involved
Four years ago, Graeme Williams was determined to take the sport to a new level when he became head coach of Windsor Squash and Fitness.
“When I first got here, I was just really getting the lay of the land,” he said. “The first thing I realized was there was a real vacuum in terms of juniors.
“There were very little juniors and those we had were here because their parents were members.”
So the native Englishman set his sights on building the junior squash program.
He figured the best way was to create an awareness of the sport for children between five to 18 years old. He approached a few members who were teachers with an idea about bringing squash into the schools and having the kids come to the club to try their new skills.
Soon the Active Schools program was created.
Today, the junior program has grown to more than 90 players.
“Last year alone, we had 3,000 kids come through the Active Schools program,” he said. “Obviously, it’s a small number that joins the program, but the best thing about what we’ve done is when we first went into the schools, no one knew about squash. “Now, that has changed.” Williams was recently awarded the Trailblazer Coach award in recognition of his hard work and determination. He was nominated by Squash Ontario for the award presented by the Coaches Association of Ontario.
The Trailblazer award recognizes innovative out-of-the-box coaches who inspire others to follow and has made a difference in their sport or for their athletes.
“It was an amazing honour to be recognized,” he said. “It’s an award for everyone in the club. It’s a reward for people’s dedication, support and real team effort for where we’ve got squash to in Windsor.”
Williams is no stranger to squash. He started playing when he was 10 years old and by the age of 16, was coaching and teaching. He was named the Canadian coach at the Pan Am Games in 2015 and just accepted the coaching position as the Women’s National Coach for the next two years.
“One of my motivations for getting into squash coaching was to get more kids involved in squash and give them the chances I had,” he said.
“This is what I love, so I’m selfishly doing what I enjoy.”
Obviously, it’s a small number that joins the program, but the best thing about what we’ve done is when we first went into the schools, no one knew about squash.