HELP MAKE AIDEN’S DREAM COME TRUE

AHilton boy, who dreams of becoming a legendary squash player, needs your help to get him an international qualifying tournament in the New Year.

Aiden McNeill (14), has been playing squash since he was four years old, and is currently ranked at 45 in South Africa amongst men and junior players according to SportyHQ.

His proud mum, Hayley, said he has received his KwaZulu-Natal colours for the past five years in a row, and for three of those five years, he has been the number one player in the province in his respective age groups.

“He also received his South African Schools colours this year and went to play at the nationals in Cape Town, where he came second on the glass court in the U15 boys division,” she told The Hilton.

“He also won the Northerns (Pretoria) tournament this year, came fourth at the Bloemfontein Open, third at SA Closed, 10th at the Midlands Closed in May and just recently finished fourth in the Hilton Club Championships and fourth at the Collegians Club Championships.

“Aiden was also a three-time academy champion at the Ravi Govender Academy, where he trains, this year.”

Speaking to The Hilton, Aiden said he loves the thrill of playing squash, especially if he is up against an older opponent.

“If I play against an adult and it comes down to the wire in a five-setter, that is where I gain my most self-belief; in a challenge like that,” he added.

What makes Aiden’s success even more remarkable is that the teenager was diagnosed with a perceptual processing disorder, Visual Stress, in April 2022 and learned to play squash with only around 50% vision.

“Visual Stress causes environmental distortions in one’s brain and determines how the brain decodes light,” Hailey explained.

“The specialist we have been dealing with is in Pretoria. He manually puts colours into Aiden’s glasses to correct the distortions which he sees.

“Personally, as a mother, to hear my child read fluently for the first time was such a sense of relief. We have seen a huge improvement with how he describes his vision today, which has improved his grades at school, as well as his play on the squash court.”

The cost of treating their son’s condition has, however, meant that they are struggling to afford to get him to the British Junior Open, which runs from January 3 to 7.

Aiden is really keen to take part in the event as part of his ongoing build-up to try and qualify for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.

“Squash was accepted into the LA28 Olympic Games a few short months ago, which led Aiden to decide he wanted to go play at the British Junior open to up his international experience,” said Hailey.

“So, I began crowdfunding for him, which has lead to R17 500 coming in from that. We have also had support coming in from the squash communities, which enabled us to pay for the entry fees for the tournament, for which we are so grateful.

“But, we still need R23 500 for an air ticket and the recommended accommodation by the tournament is R42 000 for the week, which includes all meals and transport to and from the venues.”

The McNeil family has started a GoFundMe page to help raise money. You can donate to the campaign at https://gofund.me/ e229adac. Alternatively, you can donate to Hayley directly using the following banking details: First National Bank, Ms HN McNeill, Savings Account, Branch Code – 220825, Account number 62120436250.

Christmas is the season for giving, so please try and help Aiden achieve his dream of winning the British Junior Open Trophy and becoming a squash legend like the players he admires.