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Jamie has his sights set on Glasgow 2014


By Will Clark

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Jamie Henderson aims to make a living out of playing squash.
Jamie Henderson aims to make a living out of playing squash.

TURNING professional in a bid to represent his country at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, a Thurso squash player will be hoping to make a big impression with selectors Down Under.

After achieving success as a junior, Jamie Henderson turned full-time to join the Professional Squash Association World Tour (PSA) in January.

Finishing as runner-up at the under-23 Scottish National Championship earlier this year, the 20-year-old was chosen to be part of the Scottish senior squad.

This week he is competing in the men’s doubles competition at the Australian Open and he will be playing in New Zealand in September.

The tournaments are qualifiers for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July and, despite saying it will be a tough prospect, Jamie believes a good showing in Australia and New Zealand could be enough to cement a place in the squad next year.

“It’s very difficult to compete in the singles as I am not ready at that level yet, having only just turned professional,” he said. “But there is a chance I could represent Scotland in the doubles.

“I’m not sure who my partner is going to be in Australia yet, but if we can get a win against a pairing who are in the top 100, it could be enough to seal our place at Glasgow.”

Last summer, Jamie moved to Edinburgh to work alongside coach Roger Flynn before turning professional at the beginning of 2013.

Since making the jump from junior to senior level, he has seen his world ranking shoot up to 258th, moving up 20 places since last month.

He wants to make a living out of the game but acknowledges that to do so he would have to be ranked among the best in the world.

“My aim is to get into the top 60 but a lot of training has to be done before I get there,” he said,

To make a good living out of the game, you have to reach at least the top 100. There are a lot of professional players who have part-time jobs and require funding from Scottish Squash to get by.

“My coach said I was good enough to turn professional at the start of the year and so far I have played in two PSA tournaments.

“Due to my current ranking, it is difficult to get far in these competitions as I keep getting drawn against the top players which has seen me knocked out of the first round.

“But it has only been a year since I made the jump from junior level and it is a big step-up. I have such a love of the game I am determined to do well in my professional career and achieve my aim.”

Starting playing squash at the age of 13, encouraged by his parents James and Alison, Jamie was part of the successful Scotland squad which finished fourth in the under-19 European Championship in Portugal – the best performance from a Scottish team for 25 years.

He is planning to head back to the far north next month to play at a special exhibition at Thurso Squash Club and help promote the sport in the county.

“Thurso Squash Club once had 200 members but that has decreased, but I have worked as a coach to help promote the game in the region,” he said.

“The facilities at Thurso and at Wick are of a decent standard as the courts are very good to play on.

“It is a great sport to play, especially during the winter when the weather isn’t great and hopefully more youngsters will take up the game in future.”


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