2002 - San Juan, Puerto Rico : Porto Rico

Press Releases | Photos | Final Results | Draws : Individual Competition

Two years ago, when the Canadian Men's Team won the 2000 Racquetball World Championships, it was in an 11-10 tiebreaker win by Canadian doubles specialists Mike Green and Mike Ceresia. The Mikes did it again at the 2002 World Championships, defeating the Americans 11-8 in the tiebreaker to clinch the Gold Medal for the Canadian Men’s Team for another two years.

Unfortunately Canada's Women's Team was not able to repeat their Gold Medal upset performance from the Pan Am Trials/Tournament of the Americas last spring, as the Team USA once again walked away with the Women's Team Gold Medal for the eleventh straight time.

Canada was hoping to hold on to the overall Combined Team Gold medal that they had wrested from the Americans in 2000 by a one-point margin, but Saturday in Puerto Rico it was the undefeated American women that made the difference.

The top seeded teams will meet Saturday in the Racquetball World Championship Team Finals to determine which country will have the bragging rights for the next two years.

Canada's Men's team was seeded #1 in this team competition, and they disposed of first Argentina and then Japan in the quarter- and semi-final play Friday. The day did not start well as Calgary's Brian Istace (Calgary) lost to Argentina's Shai Manzuri in the tiebreaker. "I just couldn't seem to put the ball away, and Shai is too quick and too good when the ball is up," said Istace following the match. "I didn't play too well, but I know our doubles team can pick me up."

Team Argentina forfeited their second singles match, to tie the team score at 1-1, and to force the doubles teams to decide who would advance to the semis. Canada's men's doubles players (Green & Ceresia) then unexpectedly had to leap into action. After losing the first game 15-14, they rallied to win the match and propel the men's team into the semis. "It was a slow start and we hadn't really had a chance to play a tough team in a couple of days," said Green afterwards. "We were down 6-13 in the first game and came back to 14-13 but then lost it 15-14. There was a lot of pressure in the second and third games, but we felt more in control." Coach Michel Gagnon (Longueuil, PQ) explained "It was a very tough match to jump in to when we were 1-1 with Argentina."

The morning match-up for the Women's Teams featured Team Canada vs Team Korea, one of the most improved teams over the past couple of years. Jennifer Saunders (Winnipeg) was exhausted after her tie-breaker win. Luckily Josee Grand’maitre (Longueuil, PQ) had an easier time with her Korean opponent. "I used my drive serve the whole match. She couldn't move well enough to get my serve and she set me up almost every time." That gave the Women's Team a 2-0 lead and the right to advance to the semis. Canada's women's doubles players did not have to play since the Canada-Korea team result was already determined.

In the semi finals, the Women faced Bolivia. "After a cold shower, a meal, and a rest, I feel really good," said Saunders after a decisive 15-6, 15-7 win over her opponent. "I could run the ladder." (This refers to one of her training drills which involves stepping through the rungs of a ladder on the floor.) Grand'Maître also disposed of her opponent, once again giving the Saskatchewan doubles duo a bye.

The Men's semis saw Japan challenging Canada. "I felt a little better," said Istace following his win, "but I still have to stay mentally focussed and play one point at a time." Waselenchuk said "That's the best I've played all week, and the best I've moved all week. I can't wait to get out there again."

And he will get that chance Saturday at 2 pm when he takes on Jason Thoerner of the USA in the first Men's Team match of the day. The Women's final will also see Canada against the USA.

The all-important Team competition has begun at the XI Racquetball World Championships, and Canada has advanced to the Quarter Finals in a bid to retain the World Championship crown for another two years.

"The players are doing really well," reports team physio Bob Fong (Vancouver). "They came into this tournament physically fit, and they are holding up well. Unfortunately these championships are being held at two venues, which makes it a little awkward when some of our team are at each venue at the same time. But overall it's great to see the maple leaf uniforms on the court."

Team Canada held a team dinner Thursday night, and the players are focussed. According to coach Ron Brown (Winnipeg), "They are serious and they are psyched up. The women's team in particular is ready to get out there and play some winning racquetball."

And they'll have to be tough. "The competition this year is stronger than I've seen before," said chief referee Cal Smith (Burnaby), a veteran of eight previous world championships. Fong agrees. "The competition is intense, there is so much at stake, and there are more countries than ever before."

Friday will be a tough day of competition, with both the Women's Team and the Men's Team playing a possible two other countries. The finals will take place on Saturday, after which the new World Championship Teams will be crowned.

Putting the disappointments of the last four days of Individual competition behind them, eight of Canada's national racquetball team are preparing to defend Canada's World Champion Title at the 2002 Racquetball World Championships in Puerto Rico.

Wednesday was a day of rest for the players and coaches and support staff. One of those support staff is Cal Smith of Burnaby, B.C., who is attending his seventh World Championships as the official referee for Canada. "My job is to referee whenever a Canadian player loses a match," explained Smith. "And unfortunately I had to do a lot of refereeing on Tuesday." Canadians were in the finals in three events on Tuesday, and lost all three, settling for silver medals in the men's doubles, women's doubles and women's singles events.

"The toughest part about this tournament is the heat," said Smith. "The courts are air conditioned but the referees, spectators and coaches are all outside in 35 degree sunny, windless humidity. It's extremely draining."

The other thing that has been frustrating for Canada is the number of games lost by a single point. "This is a recurring nightmare for Canada. We've had several instances where the Canadian has been awarded the match point, then the opponent has appealed and won the appeal, then the opponent has gone on to win the match." The most famous time this happened previously was in the Winnipeg Pan Am Games when Canada's Christie Van Hees lost the Women's Singles on a bad call.

Christie Van Hees (Kelowna, BC) was the 1998 World Champion in Women's Singles, and a member of the 2000 World Championship Team. Heading in to the three days of Team play "is where the coaches and your team mates help you focus on what is important," said Van Hees from her home in Kelowna, "to remind the athletes of their inspiration to win, and of what it feels like to dominate."

The format of the World Championships is individual competition on the first four days, then a rest day, then three days of team competition. "Having last night off was a good release for everyone," said Smith. "On Thursday, Team Canada will face Team Costa Rica." In the Team competition, the men's singles players play the men’s singles players from the other team; if the teams split the games then the doubles teams play to break the tie. Ditto for the women's teams.

Each team will play until they lose. Team Canada will face up to four countries, with the finals scheduled for Saturday.

"It was a good day and a bad day", said team coach Michel Gagnon (Longueuil, PQ). "We are in three of the four finals tomorrow, but we expected Kane to win and Brian also came so close. It was only a couple of points difference between having them all in the finals." Instead, the men's singles will be an all-American final, and Istace and Waselenchuk will have an extra rest day in preparation for the all-important Team event which starts Thursday.

The big win of the day was Canada’s National Champion, Jen Saunders, defeating Laura Fenton in the tiebreaker. "I know from the Ladies Pro Tour that Laura is a bit of a slow starter, so I wanted to make sure I got the first game. In the second game she was serving lob z serves to my forehand. I was down 14-3 but I rallied to get enough points to get first serve in the tiebreaker. In the third game, I went back to my kiss-lob serve, which worked very well. And on her z-serves, I took my coach’s advice and returned her serves less aggressively."

Saunders will now face the top female player in the world, Cheryl Gudinas, who won almost every tournament on the women’s pro circuit last season. But anything can happen at the World Championships and, as Saunders says, "I’m looking forward to the opportunity to win a World Championship."

The Women's Doubles team will also face Americans in the finals Tuesday. "I feel great," said Amanda MacDonald, "and I am looking forward to the finals. It took a little while to get my pass shot down but once I did I just kept ripping it." Her partner Karina Odegard was also happy with how they played Monday. "The way Amanda is pounding the ball has opened up the court and is keeping our opponents off balance – that lets me have some easy shots."

Mike Green and Mike Ceresia easily dispatched the Venezuelan team in the semis, and will now face the Mexicans in the final of the Men's Doubles event. In the other semi, the Mexicans beat up on the veteran American team with a 15-12, 15-5 victory, so Canada will not meet the second-seeded Americans after all. But that's ok - Canada's Mikes are focussed on Gold for Tuesday.

Women's Doubles
Quarterfinals: Amanda MacDonald (Prince Albert) & Karina Odegard (Saskatoon) defeated Kim Minju & Hwang KyoungYun (Korea) 15-6, 15-6

Men's Singles
Brian Istace (Calgary) defeated Shai Manzuri (Argentina) 15-3, 15-5
Quarter finals: Istace defeated Hiroshi Shimizu (Japan) 15-3, 15-6
Kane Waselenchuk (Edmonton) defeated Darren Strengers (Australia) 15-1, 15-1
Quarter finals: Waselenchuk defeated Cesar Castro (Venezuela) 15-6, 15-6

Women's Singles
Jen Saunders (Winnipeg) defeated Malhee Kwon (Korea) 15-11, 15-1
Quarter finals: Saunders defeated Toshiko Sakamoto (Japan) 15-10, 15-14

Josee Grand'Maître (Longueuil) defeated Jang MoonYoung (Korea) 5-15; 15-3; 11-0
Quarterfinals: Grand'Maître defeated Yaque Parada (Bolivia) 4-15; 15-5; 11-6

San Juan, Puerto Rico All of Canada's National Team members have advanced to the semi finals in racquetball's XI World Championships.

The day started with at 9 a.m. with Canada's 2001 national champion Josée Grand'Maître on the court against a tough Korean player. After her first-round match, Grand'Maître had commented "I felt comfortable on the court, but the heat really affects my legs off the court." After losing the first game, Grand'Maître settled down and took the next two games decisively. Four hours later, Grand'Maître was on the court again, this time against Bolivia's #2 player. "It was just like this morning where I started so slow and finally worked my way into the match. She rolled everything from the start and I never got going in that first game. I'll have to start better in my next match."

Canada's current National Champion, Jennifer Saunders, has also advanced to the quarter finals with a 15-14 win over Japan's #2 player. Canada's national women's Doubles champions, Amanda MacDonald and Karina Odegard, continued their domination of the doubles draw with a solid win over the Korean team. They will now face the Japanese team who scored a surprise upset over the Bolivians. The Bolivian team played amazing racquetball a few months ago at the Pan Am Trials in Bolivia, but playing at sea-level may be affecting their game.

Top-seeded Brian Istace is in fine form with three wins under his belt so far. He used his first rounds to "practise my drive serves. They worked pretty well so I started to work on my lobs after that." Representing Canada as the #2 men's singles player, Kane Waselenchuk has also advanced with four wins to his credit. Both men will face Americans in the semi finals Monday afternoon. Waselenchuk will face Jack Huczek, who is the other 'kid' on the men’s pro tour. Waselenchuk finished the pro season ranked #4 on that tour, with Huczek breathing down his neck at #5.

August 3, 2002 - Day One At The World Championships

National Team Players:

Men's Singles
Kane Waselenchuk (Edmonton) defeated Mahab Khatib (Syria) 15-1,15-1
Kane Waselenchuk (Edmonton) defeated Juan Cageao (Costa Rica) 15-1, 15-1
Brian Istace (Calgary) defeated Jimmy Gannon (Ireland) 15-4, 15-4

Men's Doubles
Mike Ceresia (Burlington) & Mike Green (Burlington) had a bye

Women's Singles
Josee Grand’Maitre (Longueuil) defeated Francine Matthews (Ecuador) 15-0, 15-1
Jen Saunders (Winnipeg) defeated Martha Jarrin (Ecuador) 15-1, 15-0

Women's Doubles
Amanda MacDonald (Prince Albert) & Karina Odegard (Saskatoon) defeated Lan Huynh & Thao Le (Vietnam) 15-8, 15-4

Other Canadians:
Gary Shaw (Ottawa) defeated Paul Feeney (Australia)
Gary Shaw (Ottawa) lost to Shai Manzuri (Argentina)
Gus Tsouras (Winnipeg) lost to Danni Maggi (Argentina)

San Juan, Puerto Rico As expected, Canada's national team players advanced in the first rounds of the XI World Championships. Canada is the defending World Championship Team.

The opening ceremony Friday night was held at Olympic Plaza, headquarters of the Puerto Rican Olympic Committee. Thirty-five countries participated in the ceremony, which took place against the backdrop of the old San Juan fort.

The games are being held in two clubs, the Parque Central and the YMCA. Both clubs feature air-conditioned courts with glass-backed walls for viewing. But what is different for Canadians is the fact that the court viewing areas are outdoors in the 35 degree humidity. The coaches, spectators and referees are all outside, while the players hit the ball at speeds close to 200 kmh in air-conditioned comfort.

The world championships are divided into two segments. For the first four days, the players compete for individual titles. On Tuesday evening, we will know who are the world champions in men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles and women's doubles. Wednesday will be a rest day for the players, then Thursday through Sunday it all begins again as the countries compete for the World Championship Team title.

Two other Canadians are competing, but for other countries. Ottawa's Gary Shaw is representing Great Britain, and Winnipeg's Gus Tsouras is part of the Greek contingent. Both of these men are avid racquetball enthusiasts in their home town. Shaw runs leagues and is helping to coordinate racquetball's resurgence in Ottawa, and Tsouras is a long-time sponsor of the sport in Winnipeg.

The Canadian team players have a total of eleven matches on Sunday, starting with Josée Grand'Maître's game at 9 a.m. and finishing with Ceresia and Green's match at 9 pm.