Under 19 Champions Ashley Hall and Wasey Maqsood
The 2023 YouFirst Financial Junior Closed Championships took place this past weekend at Mayfair Parkway. After a final day of extremely competitive matches, our top junior athletes battled their way to the podium and seven new champions were crowned.
Many of our athletes will be playing in the Canadian, US and British Junior Open over the next few weeks, where they will compete against top players from across the world. This final stretch of 2023 events will showcase their hard work and progress since the beginning of the season, and we look forward to cheering for our Ontario athletes as they take on their next challenge.
A special thank you to our sponsor, YouFirst Financial, for continuing to support our events year after year. YouFirst Financial’s CEO and President Simon Chun’s generosity makes it possible for Squash Ontario to provide a quality experience for all participants. Thank you to Mayfair Parkway and tournament chair Cory McCartney, as well as our tournament referee, Sofia Navadeh, who keep things on track and running smoothly all weekend long!
On Sunday, we held a courtside presentation with two new trophies for the Boys and Girls Under 19 Champions. With thanks to two amazing squash families, the Guptas and the Gemmells, we were able to unveil The Gemmell Cup, won by Ashley Hall and The Arjun Gupta Memorial Trophy, won by Wasey Maqsood. Both trophies are backdated with winners from 1999 onwards and has some of the greatest players in Ontario history etched onto it. To quote the Gemmell sisters, “this trophy represents dedication, tenacity and the love of the game”.
With the sudden passing Arjun Gupta, one of Squash Ontario’s most decorated and dedicated junior athletes, earlier over the summer, we hope the Arjun Gupta Memorial Trophy can honour the legacy of Arjun and educate future athletes about the culture of community that the Guptas and the Gemmells helped to create.
We were lucky to have the extended Gupta family in attendance, including Arjun’s mother Anita, father Ajay and brother Amar, who presented the trophy to the Boys Under 19 Champion and shared some lovely words about Arjun and his squash career. Although the Gemmell family was unable to make it, their childhood coaches Jess DiMauro, Jim Paton and Jamie Nicholls were happy to say a few words and present the trophy on their behalf.
A touching excerpt from Michelle, Laura and Jen’s speech read on Sunday:
“Arjun was simply one of the best juniors to play squash in Ontario. And not just because of his ridiculous talent. He was hard working, dedicated but also cheeky and hilarious. He was a fiercely loyal friend and felt like family to many. The Arjun Gupta Memorial Trophy represents his best qualities and its first winner should feel immense pride because Arj was truly one of a kind”.
Podium Finishers:
Girls Under 13
1st – Laila Bayaha
2nd – Amna Sultan
3rd – Zara Khalil
Girls Under 15
1st – Melody Farhang Nia
2nd – Olivia Bolger
3rd – Fatima Sultan
Girls Under 17/19
1st – Ashley Hall
2nd – Sasha Lee
3rd – Charlotte Ghaeli
Boys Under 11
1st - Satbir Mehat
2nd - Noah Bigaignon
3rd - Mikael Humayun
Boys Under 13
1st – Obie Ryding
2nd – Yianni Theodoropoulos
3rd – Arman Takmazyan
Boys Under 15
1st – Navin Kerr
2nd – Luca Mariglia
3rd – Baker Felesky
Boys Under 17/19
1st – Wasey Maqsood
2nd – Ethan Jain
3rd – Arham Izhar
To learn more about our sponsor, click here.
For a complete list of winners and scores from the event, click here.
