That’s an awful lot of squash
The behind-the-back and betweenthe-legs shots can only go on for so long, you’d think.
But that’s to be expected after 40 hours on a squash court.
That’s what teenage Palmerston North squash players Richard Bell and Kaitlyn Watts are trying to do and if they get there, it will be a world record.
The pair started at 4am yesterday at Squashgym Palmerston North and intend to go to 8pm tonight.
Late on Thursday morning the two were looking carefree and not too tired, but that was only seven hours in. While neither was expending too much energy in order not to run out of steam too early, there were a few flashy shots. Expect the two to be knackered once they reach 40 hours.
Yesterday, they had a support crew with music blaring and friends offering advice.
Watts and Bell are allowed a five-minute break every hour, but they can accumulate those breaks if they do a few hours at a time and can have a longer break.
They had only spent a few minutes off court yesterday morning.
It is a fundraiser event for both of them to go to the American junior open in New Haven, Connecticut in December and the British junior open in Birmingham in January.
Bell is at Palmerston North Boys’ High School and Watts is at Freyberg High School.
The world record of longest marathon playing squash is 38 hours 27 seconds, set by Len Granger and Jamie Barnett of the UK two years ago.
In April 2015, Manawatu men Adam Fisher and Darren Yates set the world record of 36 hours of squash in Perth.