Shortlist confirmed for 2024 England Squash Awards

The nominations are in! We're excited to announce the shortlisted candidates for the 2024 England Squash Awards.

This year's awards aim to celebrate the inspirational work of people across the sport, and showcase their stories and achievements across seven categories.

Commenting on the 2024 shortlist, awards panellist and England Squash Non-Executive Director Andrew Light said:

“The England Squash Awards shortlist was exceptionally strong this year, with all nominees demonstrating great dedication and passion for developing our sport.

“Their continued efforts to improve squash's accessibility and to create opportunities for diverse communities to step on court is truly inspiring. It's clear the squash community is committed to making the sport more inclusive and highlighting the immense benefits of participation. It's this passion, combined with squash recently becoming an Olympic sport, that makes me feel very optimistic about the future of our game.”

The shortlisted nominees for this year’s awards are as follows:

Club/Venue of the Year

Pontefract Squash and Leisure Club - Yorkshire
Sutton Tennis & Squash Club - Surrey
The Queen’s Club for their outreach programme run by The Queen’s Club Foundation - Middlesex

Coach of the Year

David Whitehead - Tattenhall Recreation Club
Jayne Robinson - Pontefract Squash and Leisure Club
Miles Jenkins - St George’s Hill
Neal Brooker - Colets Squash Club

Unsung Hero of the Year

Clare Young - West Worthing Tennis & Squash Club
James Roberts - Lichfield Squash Club
Martin Braybrook - Cromer Tennis & Squash Association
Simon Tunley - University of Sussex

Young Volunteer/Coach of the Year

Max Peycke - Wycombe Squash & Racketball Club
Shae Paterson - Northern Squash
Sophie Townsend - Kenilworth Squash Club

Diversity and Inclusion Champion of the Year

Ben Davies - Biddenden Squash Club
Hannah Hodgson - Marple Cricket & Squash Club
Jo Wallis - Abbeydale Squash & Fitness Club

Rising Star of the Year – Girl

Ester Chak - David Lloyd Purley
Sienna Hampshaw - Pontefract Squash and Leisure Club
Siona Mishra - Edgbaston Priory Club

Rising Star of the Year – Boy

James Southern - Tynemouth Squash Club
Theo Hobman - Collingham & Linton Squash and Racketball Club
Viggo Hendricks - The Oakwood

Referee of the Year

Ashley Smith - Northamptonshire
Paul Clarke - Essex
Simon Martin - Oxfordshire

In addition to this year’s shortlist, England Squash would like to recognise the efforts of another 10 nominees within the community who excelled in 2024: