WINNIPEG (May 14, 2024) – Canada’s racquetball community will be gathering in Calgary next week for Racquetball Canada’s National Championships. The event, which runs from May 20 to 25, is being hosted by the Alberta Racquetball Association at the University of Calgary Racquet Centre.
The National Championships are the ultimate competition of the racquetball season in Canada. For elite athletes, results will be taken into consideration for selection to national teams and teams that will represent Canada in international competition this year which includes the upcoming World Championships and Junior World Championships.
All of Canada’s top ranked athletes have entered the tournament including the national team members who were on the podium at the last World Championships held in 2022 and the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. Québec’s Samuel Murray and Frédérique Lambert currently sit in the number one spots in national rankings. Murray is also active on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT) where he is ranked 9th in singles. Canada’s other top female athletes competing include Juliette Parent (Saint-Jacques), Christine Keay (New Westminster), Michèle Morissette (Baie-Comeau), Danielle Ramsay (Saskatoon), and Marjolaine Parent (Saint-Jacques). Top ranked male athletes include Coby Iwaasa (Lethbridge), Trevor Webb (Cambridge), Kurtis Cullen (Brandon), Lee Connell (Saskatoon) and Nathan Jauvin (Terrebonne).To find out more about Canada’s top athletes, click here for biographies of our national team members.
The National Championships also include several age and skill categories that provide everyone in the sport an opportunity to compete at their own level. This year’s championships includes singles and doubles divisions for junior age athletes up to a category for players 65 years and older. The ages of those registered range from 12 to 83. As a result, the championships reflect the strong racquetball community in Canada and are a true competition for life experience.
Who: Over 140 players of all ages and skills including Canada’s top ranked and developing elite racquetball athletes
What: 2024 National Championships
Where: University of Calgary Racquet Centre, 2500 University Drive NW
When: May 20 to 25, 2024
Racquetball Canada will be live-streaming matches throughout the upcoming tournament. This year, we’re excited to welcome Darrell Davis as our featured livestream commentator.
Davis brings a wealth of experience to our livestream as a prominent figure in sports broadcasting. He is a highly respected sports reporter for the Regina Leader-Post, a published author, long-time commentator on The Green Zone radio show and honoured member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. Davis is deeply ingrained in the racquetball community. As a long-time player, advocate and dedicated volunteer at the local, provincial and national levels who spent two decades chairing Racquetball Canada’s High Performance Committee, he is a « racquetballer for life. »
The broadcast will be shared live via Racquetball Canada’s Facebook Page and through Racquetball Canada’s YouTube Channel. We will post the streaming schedule each day on our social channels.
A direct link to the draws will be posted on homepage of the Racquetball Canada website once they are available. Please note that the draw is subject to change and start times for matches are approximate.
Racquetball Canada will also be holding its Awards Banquet in conjunction with the National Championships on May 25, where those selected to the Hall of Fame will be inducted and the championship awards will be presented.
Complete tournament and spectator information can be found at this link.