Sport
26 October, 2025
Squash tourney smash hit
LOCAL squash players have shone in the Cairns Squash International which wrapped up last Sunday, delivering five days of high-level squash and a celebration of the sport for the Far North Queensland community.
In the Cairns open divisions, Josh Porter took out the men’s title against Nick Briggs and Kiara Stubley triumphed over Tanya Lynch in the women’s competition. Dylan Carey and Richard Stevenson were crowned winners of divisions 2 and 3 respectively.
The tournament drew 44 professional players from nine countries, with matches spanning Wednesday through the weekend.
Naoki Hayashi of Japan claimed the Men’s Aro Squash International title in a gripping five-game final against Hong Tang of Hong Kong, a classic battle of attack versus counter-attack.
In the Women’s Aro International, Ena Kwong of Hong Kong defeated H. Tan of Malaysia in three games.
Her variety of shots proving too much for the younger opponent.
Event organiser and head coach at Genesis Sportsworld Marc Forster said the atmosphere over the weekend was extraordinary.
“Once we got to Saturday, all the kids turned up, the open players from around the region and the pros were in their semifinals. Everything wrapped up Sunday afternoon and the atmosphere was incredible, everybody seemed really happy,” he said.
The men’s final stood out as a highlight, a tense contest of contrasting styles.
“It went as long as it could go, one very attacking player, one defensive turning defence into attack. It was a real counter-attack battle over an hour and the crowd loved it,” Mr Forster said.
The combination of juniors, local players and international professionals created a unique spectacle.
“Normally, these groups are quite separate but having them all together worked well. It’s something the locals haven’t seen in years,” Mr Forster said.
Many left planning to return next year.
