The addition of squash to the programme for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games has been rated as “potentially the greatest and most globally celebrated milestone in the sport’s 160-year history” by the President of the World Squash Federation (WSF).
Zena Wooldridge, WSF President, told SportAccord that the new status will provide opportunities for the body to accelerate the delivery of its strategy – a move that will include developing new commercial opportunities and extending the network of partners and supporters.
Olympic preparations are now at the top of the list of the WSF’s priorities over the next 12 months as it liaises with the LA28 Organising Committee and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to determine the venue, schedule and qualification process for the Games.
Wooldridge said the Professional Squash Association (PSA) and US Squash will also take part in that process as the sport’s key partners in the Olympic project.
Globally, Wooldridge added that the WSF is aware of the need to grow the sport at a grassroots level in an increasingly competitive space and to achieve greater gender parity in coaching and refereeing, particularly at national and international levels.
However, Wooldridge also noted that, at the WSF World Team Championships in December 2023, the men’s and women’s competitions took place alongside each other, rather than separately, for the first time.
A similar format will be adopted for the World Junior Team Championships in July 2024 and the WSF has also launched a series of women’s coaching courses.
Wooldridge, who took part in a Plenary Conference Programme discussion on Wednesday about how sports can work together to address challenges, said: “The aim is to increase the proportion of female coaches around the world, ultimately leading to more female national coaches. We have received a very positive response to this initiative from our coaching community.”
She added that the WSF has also completed a review, resulting in more effective skills and a better gender balance in its Commissions, with task groups set up to address specific issues such as sustainability, transgender athletes and safeguarding.
Partners
The SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2024 is supported by a number of strong partners and suppliers:
Gold Partner: Sport Event Denmark
Silver Partners: EventScotland, Explore Edmonton, Tourism & Events Queensland
Bronze Partner: Sport Liverpool , Sports Authority Thailand
Official Suppliers: DB Schenker, Wiz-Team
About SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit
The SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit brings together around 1,500 leaders and key decision makers from over 120 International Federations (IFs), the International Olympic Committee, and organisations involved in the business of sport.
The Summit provides an unrivalled platform enabling global business leaders and host cities to have access to all the International Federations and their stakeholders in one location over several days.
This unique event is a combination of official sports meetings, networking gatherings, a themed conference programme, and exhibition space enabling International Federations, industry, cities and regions to showcase and advance their sport, services and facilities.
About SPORTACCORD
SportAccord is a sports event organisation based in the Olympic Capital, Lausanne, Switzerland, and governed by stakeholders representing the Olympic and non-Olympic International Federations.
It brings together International Federations and organisations involved in the business of sport with the aim to serve, promote and protect the common interests of its stakeholders, help them achieve their global objectives and facilitate knowledge-sharing.
SportAccord’s stakeholders include:
ASOIF (Association of Summer Olympic International Federations)
WOF (Winter Olympic Federations)
ARISF (Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations)
AIMS (Alliance of Independent Recognised Members of Sport)
Visit SportAccord.sport for more information.
About Yutang Sports
As one of SportAccord's Principal Media Partners, Yutang Sports is a Chinese leading sports marketing and media platform, with an ultimate mission to connect China and world through sports. After years of growing, Yutang Sports, with a comprehensive media and marketing promotion system, is now dedicating to reporting sports business and marketing trends, providing sports business news, analysis, and exclusive data reports in both Chinese and English. Having been cooperated with top-level domestic and international sports summits, Yutang Sports is opening a window for Chinese sports industry to embrace the world.