The IRF signed a 4 year exclusive equipment sponsorship with E-Force. The San Diego based racquetball equipment manufacturer will support the IRF's mission to promote the sport of racquetball in various ways. Check out more details about the IRF-E-Force partnership soon.

Victor Montserrat and Marta Ripoll made racquetball history by becoming the first Champions of Catolonia. Montserrat defeated Oriol Salvia 15-8, 15-9 in the final while Ripoll defeated Núria Cardellach 15-2, 15-5. The tournament was held in Club Natació in Barcelona where international tournaments may be held in the near future.

The 18th IRF World Junior Championships 2005 in Tempe, AZ, USA have been successfully concluded last week. The Mexican Junior Team was able to win the overall World Junior Cup once again. It is the fifth time Team Mexico was able to claim the overall World Junior title. For complete results and final matches check out the Junior Worlds event site. Congratulations to Mexico.

In its 2006 December issue, GeezerJock magazine unveils the winner of the Michelob ULTRA GeezerJock of the Year Award. Racquetball player Ruben Gonzalez, a 54 year old from the USA. won the award, which recognizes supreme athletic achievement in athletes 40 years of age and older. Selected by a combination of the GeezerJock editorial board and thousands of votes to celebrate the best athletes 40-and-over in the world. Fans describe Gonzalez's accomplishment as comparable to tennis great Jimmy Connors.

For the first time ever the IRF World Junior Championships will be broadcasted ONLINE. The event started yesterday in Tempe, Arizona, USA. This webcast will be for free but is not available the whole day. Just go to the website below and sign in to watch some exciting games from racquetball's future stars.

The Irish Junior Team (left) will be just one of many teams that will compete in the IRF Junior Worlds in Tempe, USA. The opening ceremony will be held today at 7pm local time, while matches will start tomorrow morning. Check out the link below once the tournament director has published the draws and times.

Paris will once again be the site for the French Open in Racquetball in 2007. The club Forrest-Hill City Form in Nanterre, where the Open have been held for 26 times already, will be the host club for the first European tournament of the new year.

Great honor for Vice President Lucy Zachrisson: In view of her 2006 success at the Central American & Caribbean Games, she was awarded the best racquetball athlete in Guatemala this year. The award was presented to her by the President of the Republic of Guatemala, Mr. Oscar Berger. Congratulations Lucy!!

Only a few days until the start of the Sports Exhibition in Gorinchem, Netherlands. Dutch Racquetball will showcase the sport there with a racquetball court specially build to demonstrate the sport. The court will have the same length and width as a regular court but the height of the walls will be 2 meter 50 without a ceiling.

Check out the complete overview of received entries for the upcoming IRF World Juniors in Tempe, USA. Click on "Entries on the left side bar to see how many players from around the world have currently signed in for the 2006 Junior Worlds. Any incorrect information shall be reported to the Technical Director Usher Barnoff at usherbar@shaw.ca as soon as possible.

This month, two finals matches from the 2006 IRF World Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, will be broadcasted on The Tennis Channel, each at 4pm eastern time:
Ladies Doubles:
Team Canada - Team USA     12/27/06
Ladies Singles:
C. van Hees (USA) - R. Rajish (USA)    12/28/06

At yesterday's meeting at the Centro Sportivo in Brembate, Marco Arnoldi was elected as new President of 'Racquetball Italia'. It will be Arnoldi's first term in office. Other board members: Vice President Matteo Urbani from Bergamo, Secretary Andrea Madama, Treasurer Federico Minacapilli. The new board will meet quite often in the near future: The 2007 European Championships will be held in Italy...

The European Racquetball Federation has started it's own Newsletter under the name 'Racquetball Europe'. 15 years ago, former ERF Vice President Philip Duignan initiated a simular communication tool which only survived a few issues. The new attempt will only be published once 4 news pages are filled.

An IPRO Instructor Course will be held in Tempe, Arizona, just prior to the IRF Junior Worlds.  Those wanting to secure their IPRO Instructor License, can sign up for the two day event on December 13th and 14th. The club is LA Fitness in Tempe, about a 10 minute drive from Arizona State University, where the Championships will be held beginning on December 16th. In conjunction with the full 'certificaiton course', there will be an "Introduction to IPRO", designed to train assistants in the field for junior, senior, and special interest group programs. See more info on the IPRO websites

The European Racquetball Federation (ERF) has granted the 2007 European Championships to Italy. It is the first time that European Racquetball’s premier competition will be held there. The site for this event will be the Centro Sportivo in Brembate, a little village close to Milan and Bergamo. The date for the ‘EURO 2007’ has been set for July 28th – August 4th 2007.

7 titles were up for grabs at last weekends National Club Championships held in Kingscourt. Arklow won the Open Men's grade for the third consecutive year. Newcastle regained the Intermediate Men's grade while the youthful Kingscourt team (pictured) were victorious in the Novice Men's grade. Templederry won the Open Women's grade for the third time while Touraneena regained the Intermediate Women's title. Touraneena doubled up to win both the Junior Boys and Junior Girls titles.

For the first time ever, Racquetball was part of the Guatemala National Games, an event only for junior athletes. 35 junior players competed in this competition, while over 100 spectators, mostly parents cheered for their children. Many of these young players will also play for Guatemala in the upcoming World Junior Championships.

Local hero Victor Monserrat is the mens singles favorite for the 2006 Racquetball Championships in Catalonia (Spain) that will be held December 20th-23rd. The event takes place in the Club Natació in Barcelona. No entry fee will be charged and a free tournament souvenir shirt will be provided for every participant. The event is for Catalonians only, of course.

The 3rd edition of the Asia Racquetball Open will be held in Fukuoka, Japan on January 26-28, 2007. The event is sanctioned by the Asia Racquetball Federation. Competitions for mens and womens singles will be offered. In addition, a friendship competition between Korean and Japanese college students will be held. The entry deadline is scheduled for December 25th. Entries shall be submitted to Mr. Yasushi Tanahara in Japan.

Defending Champions Mirjam van Rijn and Michiel van der Holst are also National Singles Champions 2006 in the Netherlands. Van der Holst defeated Erik Timmermans in the final. Erna Arbeider became seond in the ladies singles. The National Championships have been hosted by the Westvliet Wellness & Racquet Club in The Hague.

The 2006 Choice Hotels US Open Racquetball Championships ended on all high notes as history was made. Christie Van Hees (CAN) and Jason Mannino (USA) became the 2006 Choice Hotels US Open racquetball champions. Christie  defeated Cheryl Gudinas (USA) to become the only woman in the history of the U.S. Open to win three times. In the Mens Pro division, Jason  kept Rocky Carson (USA) from becoming a new name on the Trophy.

The 2006 US OPEN are underway since yesterday in Memphis, TN, USA with great press coverage supporting this event: All four major Memphis television affiliates will provide coverage throughout the weekend. On Tuesday morning, Jack Huczek was interviewed by veteran Memphis anchorwomen Valerie Calhoun during the live broadcast of WHBQ-FOX's "Good Morning Memphis".

The Universidad del Norte in Puerto will be the site of the 12th National Colombian Racquetball Championships this year. The Colombian Racquetball Federation is the host for this event on December 4th to 10th which will be an official ranking tournament and qualifier for the upcoming 20th PARC Pan American Championships 2007 in Santiago de Chile in March.

The International Racquetball Federation recently accepted the membership application from Catalonia (Spain). An official membership agreement between the Catalonian Federation and IRF/ERF has been officially signed on November 7th in Barcelona. Since no Spanish Association is currently in place, Catalonia is allowed to compete under the name Catalonia (Spain) in World and European Championships.

Timothy Hardison (USA) is the winner of the 25th Belgian Open 2006. In an all-American Mens Singles Open Final in Antwerp, Belgium last weekend, he defeated Ian Chin in 2 games. Together they also claimed the Belgian Open Open Doubles crown by defeating the Dutch team Peter de Jong and Edwin Schipper.

Korea Racquetball hosts another gib international event this December in Seoul: The 2006 MB Card Korean Nationals offers over 15.000 US-$ price money to attract international players to come to Korea and to increase membership for the Korean Racquetball community. The event takes place December 15-17 in the Seoul YMCA. Entry deadline for international players is November 29th. See all information and contacts in the information sheet below.

The official 2006 IRF World Junior Championships logo is available for download now. It is free of any rights and National Teams can use the official logo for the National Team shirts or any other clothing. The 2006 logo will appear on the tournament shirt but also for other promotional activities before and during the event. The 2006 Junior Worlds are coming up in December in Tempe, AZ, USA.

Ireland's National Club Championships 2006 are coming up soon in Kingscourt, the country's major racquetball facility which also seeks to be named as site for the 2007 European Championships. Clubs from all Ireland are expected to compete against each other in two singles and one doubles match for the Irish National Club title.

Racquetball Canada's National Racquetball Week started yesterday. It is indeed a great initiative: It is a fun and promotional week during which the game is introduced to new people, highlights  provincial and national teams, and celebrates the game with community involvement throughout the country.

Another strong Irish participation at the IRF Junior Worlds: A record of 19 boys and girls between 11 and 19 years old will be travelling to Tempe, AZ, USA this December to compete for gold medals. All players are coming from seven different clubs throughout the country.

USA Racquetball goes new ways in reaching out for it's current and future members: The first of many newsletters that will be sent out bi-monthly to keep everyone in the Racquetball Loop. Sign up for the newsletter on the USA Racquetball website and enjoy.

Ireland's latest review on whats going on on the green island has just been published and is also available for download. Editor Pat Keane once again put together some amazing information on the racquetball activities in Ireland. Anyone who does not know much about Irish Racquetball: This is the publication you need!

12 instructors and 30 players who compete regularely in tournaments participated in a special clinic in Sucre, Bolivia. The course was held by National Team player Ricardo Monroy. "It was very successful and important for the sport in Bolivia", said Roberto Aracena, President of Racquetball Bolivia.

The Tempe Diablo Stadium, home to Angels Spring Training, has been designated as the site for the opening ceremony for the IRF World Junior Championships this year. The stadium was built in 1968 and holds nearly 10,000 people. The beginning of the ceremony on December 15 is scheduled for 7:00pm. The whole ceremony will start with a parade of all participating countries.

Alborghetti Giovanni from Brembate is the winner of the Italian National Championships 2006. Giovanni now also leads the Italian National Rankings. He defeated Madama Andrea in the singles final. Marco Vecchi finished third this year. Vecchi was the "best Italian Player" during the Italian Open 2006 this March, also finishing third place in this event.

Christie Van Hees and Jack Huczek won the men's and women's singles divisions at the Canadian Open Classic in Burlington, Ontario. Van Hees defeated Jennifer Saunders of Winnipeg in the women's final, 15-12, 15-6. With the victory, Van Hees becomes the number 1 ranked women's player in Canada. On the men's side, Huczek of Rochester Hills, Mich. defeated Jason Mannino (San Diego), 11-3, 11-5, 11-5.

Next on the European Tour are the Belgian Open 2006!! This event will be held for the 25th time in Antwerp again this year at the Indoor Sports Club. Players from all over Europe are expected to compete in the second event of the European Racquetball Tour. Points for the European Rankings will be awarded as well.

Following the Worlds this August in Santo Domingo, a certification course will be held October 13/14 at the 'Pabellon de Racquetbol' in the Dominican Republic. National Team players, Physical Education Teachers and other players will be in attandance. In addition, IPRO clinican Gary Mazaroff will also meet with the National Olympic Committee and the Sports Ministry to discuss future plans to further promote Racquetball in Dominican Republic.

Japan Racquetball (JARA) has just finished the 2006 Japan National Singles Championships on October 7-9. It was like dejá vu all over again from last year's Nationals, as in the men's final, Akio Shimizu defeated Takaaki Hirose again 15-7, 15-6 to defend his national title while in the women's final, Maiko Sato defended her title by defeating Toshiko Sakamoto again with 15-8, 15-12.

The Dutch Racquetball Association will be promoting racquetball on a major Sports Exhibition in Gorinchem, The Netherlands from 12th-14th December 2006. Not only booklets and videos will be used for this, a racquetball court will specially build to demonstrate the sport as well. The court will have the same length and width as a regular racquetball court but the height of the walls will be 2 meter 50 without a ceiling.

It's that time of the year again when racquetball's best players come to Memphis, USA to compete in the sport's premier event. The 11th 2006 Choice Hotel US Open Racquetball Championships are scheduled for November 15-19. Check out all information on the official website of this event.

The IRF is already making the first steps towards the 2011 Pan American Games!! Secretary General Luke St. Onge and Fito Baca, President of the Mexican Racquetball Federation, visited the Local Organizing Committee of the 2011 Pan American Games to review the proposed venue and organizational plan should Racquetball be included on the 2011 program. Guadalajara, Mexico will host the 2011 Pan American Games and is supportive of the inclusion of Racquetball on the program.

All three sets of Open division teams were successful in defending their titles. Just under 500 entrants competed in the US Doubles Championships. In the Open divisions, Rocky Carson and Jack Huczek completed a three-peat with their victory, while Laura Fenton and Aimee Ruiz took their second straight win. Southpaw Ruiz has also been undefeated in the Mixed Open division since 2002, and claimed her third consecutive title with partner Jason Thoerner.

A new edition of IRF NEWS, the official newsletter of the IRF has just been published and is available for download. Check out all results from the World Championships, rule changes, latest update on the 2008 World Championships, WSRC results, entry information on the 2006 World Juniors and the 2007 World Senior Doubles and other news and activities from around the racquetball world.

The IRF Executive Committee voted unanimously to bring the 14th IRF World Racquetball Championships 2008 to Paris, France. This will be the the second time that the World Championships will be held in Europe after the Championships in Hamburg, Germany in 1988. The event will take place in the City Form Club in Nanterre, a local district of Paris. The club also serves as site of the French Open every year.

Less than three months to go until the 2006 Junior World Championships in Tempe, AZ, USA. Download the official entry form for this major international junior competition. Entries are only accepted through National Federations, please check the IRF membership directory online for your country's contact information.

Mr. Gu-Hyun Kong (picture) has been elected as new president of the Asia Racquetball Federation (ARF). The election took place during the 2006 World Championships in Santo Domingo, Dom. Republic. Other board members are: Toshiharu Yanagi (Vice President), Sang-Soo Lee (Secretary General), Yasushi Tanahara (Treasurer), Mrs. Yuni Cobb (Liason Officer). The ARF is currently planing to host it's Asia Open in January 2007 and the Asia Championships in August 2007. Both events shall be held in Japan.