XXII International Racquetball Federation World Championships Recap
by Cheryl Kirk
XXII International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Racquetball Championships
San Antonio, Texas, USA
August 23-31, 2022
USA Racquetball was excited and honored to be the host country of the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) XXII World Championships. From August 23-31, a record 90 athletes from 19 countries* competed at the Thousand Oaks YMCA in San Antonio, Texas, for World Champion titles. This marked the first time since 1996 that the IRF Adult World Championships were hosted in the United States.
*Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Eritrea, Germany, Guatemala, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, and the United States.
Note: With Brent Woody Clouse representing his birth country of Eritrea in Africa, this was the first time five continents competed in the IRF World Championships.
This World Championships was different also since USA Racquetball not only fielded our U.S. Team, but we were also the LOC (Local Organizing Committee, aka Host Country). It was a lot of work and considerable expense but mostly a complete labor of love and a source of pride to be able to provide what we hope was a smooth and enjoyable trip to the USA for everyone in the 18 delegations. We even managed a record temperature for those who arrived in San Antonio on August 21st. It was 105 degrees that day, but it must be said that the weather did cool down to the upper 90’s by the end of the event – a cold wave for sure.
TEAM USA REPRESENTS!
As mentioned above, U.S. Team members traveled to San Antonio to compete against 18 other countries from five continents (North, Central, and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa) in Singles, Doubles, and Mixed Doubles.
The U.S. Team
Men’s Singles #1: Daniel De La Rosa (Texas)
Men’s Singles #2: Jake Bredenbeck (Minnesota
Men’s Doubles: Adam Manilla (California) / Sebastian Fernandez (California)
Women’s Singles #1: Kelani Lawrence (Virginia)
Women’s Singles #2 Michelle Key (Arizona)
Women's Doubles: Hollie Scott (Texas) / Kelani Lawrence
Mixed Doubles: Daniel De La Rosa / Hollie Scott
The Staff
Head Coach: Pablo Fajre (California)
Assistant Coach: Jen Meyer (Colorado)
Athletic Trainer: Brent Huff (Florida)
Team Leader: Jonathan Greenberg (Missouri)
IRF World Congress Held Thursday 8/22
Prior to the Opening Ceremonies on Friday, delegates from the countries in attendance in San Antonio attended the Thursday evening IRF World Congress meeting that’s always held at every IRF World Championships. The agenda included a financial report; an anti-doping report; a future events update; introduction of the 2024-26 IRF Rulebook (also online at internationalracquetball.com); an important Outdoor racquetball announcement; and elections. Please see the press release at the end of this article for further details.
Opening Ceremonies – Friday 8/23
The Thousand Oaks Family YMCA’s basketball court was temporarily transformed into a stadium for the Opening Ceremonies. It was all there – seats, signs, flags, music (Chariots of Fire), and local Juniors proudly leading the country delegations in during the Parade of Nations.
Mike Cantu, President of the Alamo City Racquetball Association, was Emcee of the program. At the Head Table were Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran, City of San Antonio; Chief Operations Officer Doug Desbien, YMCA of Greater San Antonio; Chief Financial Officer Dean Schear, International Racquetball Federation; Board Officer Cheryl Kirk, USA Racquetball Board of Directors, Yuni Cobb, Asia Racquetball Federation; Mike Mesecke, European Racquetball Federation; and Dr. Estuardo Wer, Pan American Racquetball Confederation.
Osvaldo Maggi, President of the International Racquetball Federation spoke last and declared Open the XXII IRF World Championships.
Following were the Athlete and Officials Oaths. The Ceremonies ended with a local Mariachi band that was well received by the audience.
World Championships Format/Scoring
And then it was time for Racquetball!
The format was Best 3 Games of 5, all to 11 points, all win by 2 points. Rally scoring was used, which means that a point is scored on every rally, by the winner of the rally, whether the rally winner was the server or the receiver.
Phase I – Individual Competition
Saturday 24th-Monday 26th, matches in the Individual phase of competition began, with initial Round Robin draws having been formed using the countries’ prior event results. Those match results then provided seeding for the formation of the Main draws, still in the Individual phase of competition (Tuesday 27th-Thursday 29th).
Phase II – Team Competition
Once the Individual phase concluded on Thursday, the Team Competition phase, seeded by the results of the Individual phase outcomes, was competed Thursday 29th-Saturday 31st.
The team competition is separately competed by each country’s men’s and women’s teams. Each team was comprised of two singles players and a doubles team.
Team competition is formatted “best two matches out of three,” so if one team won the first two matches, the third match was not competed.
After the men’s and women’s team competitions ended and the winners were determined, calculations were then applied to name the Overall Combined Team medalists and standings.
The Awards Ceremony for both phases of this World Championships took place directly after the conclusion of the Team Competition. Here are the results for Team USA and all the other countries who medaled as well! Congratulations to all!
Final Division Standings – Individual Competition
Men's Open Singles
1st – Daniel De La Rosa (USA)
2nd – Jake Bredenbeck (USA)
Semifinals – Carlos Keller (Bolivia), Eduardo Portillo (Mexico)
Women's Open Singles
1st -- Paola Longoria (Mexico)
2nd -- Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala)
Semifinals – María José Vargas (Argentina), Carla Muñoz (Chile)
Men's Open Doubles
1st – Coby Iwaasa/Samuel Murray (Canada)
2nd – Eduardo Portillo/Andree Parrilla (Mexico)
Semifinals – Adam Manilla/Sebastián Fernández (USA), Kadim Carrasco/Conrrado Moscoso (Bolivia),
Women's Open Doubles
1st – Alexandra Herrera/Montserrat Mejía (Mexico)
2nd -- María José Vargas/Natalia Mendez (Argentina)
Semifinals -- Gabriela Martinez/María Renée Rodriguez (Guatemala), Juliette Parent/Frédérique Lambert (Canada)
Mixed Open Doubles
1st – Hollie Scott/Daniel De La Rosa (USA)
2nd – Montserrat Mejía/Javier Mar (Mexico)
Semifinals – Gabriela Martinez/Edwin Galicia (Guatemala), Conrrado Moscoso/Angelica Barrios (Bolivia)
Men's A Singles
1st – Marcel Lunsmann (Germany)
2nd – Tejas Veer (India)
Semifinals – Orlando Huyke (Colombia), Patricio Gatica Tagle (Chile)
The final results of the Overall Combined Team Competition in San Antonio 2024 was one of the main qualifying criteria, by country, for The World Games (TWG) Chengdu, China 2025. Sixteen teams will compete -- eight from the Americas, four from Asia, and four from Europe. China is automatically awarded a position as the host country. Once qualifying countries have earned their TWG 2025 positions, and once all qualifying countries declare by the end of the year their intention to participate, they will each then field a team of one male and one female athlete to represent their country in singles and then together in mixed doubles. If some qualifying countries opt not to participate, an alternative selection process will be initiated.
Final Standings – Team Competition
Men's Team
1 - USA
2 - Canada
3 - Mexico
3 - Costa Rica
Women's Team
1 - Mexico
2 - Argentina
3 - USA
3 – Bolivia
Overall Combined Team
1 - Mexico
2 - USA
3 - Canada
4 - Argentina
To view the preliminary rounds, main draws, and overall results, visit www.internationalracquetball.com or https://www.r2sports.com/website/event-website.asp?TID=42436
Additionally, check out these links for more coverage:
International Racquetball Federation - IRF | Colorado Springs CO | Facebook & IRF TV - International Racquetball Federation - YouTube
Racquetball Divisions - XXII IRF World Racquetball Championships (r2sports.com)
A concurrent fundraiser event generously organized by Sudsy Monchik and Leo Vasquez took place August 28 and 29 at the YMCA. The Frank Hotels/KWM Gutterman Centurion Doubles Invitational was a unique fundraiser to assist USA Racquetball with event hosting expenses. Eleven centurion doubles teams competed in a round robin format, with Paul Julbes and Richard Eisemann taking the Gold, James Stewart and James Lindsey capturing Silver, and Omar Flores and Kenneth Poole the Bronze medalists. Thanks to Sudsy, Leo, and all the players for providing this event-within-an-event. Heartfelt thanks go to the organizers, the sponsors, and of course the players themselves!
https://www.r2sports.com/tourney/viewResults.asp?TID=42367
Thank You’s
USA Racquetball and the San Antonio Local Organizing Committee wish to deliver our heartfelt gratitude to those who made this event so truly memorable. On behalf of Board President Stewart Solomon, the USA Racquetball Board of Directors, Executive Director Mike Grisz, Jonathan Greenberg, and Karen Grisz, we will strive not to leave anyone out! Thank you to:
Sandy Rios, Dean Schear, and Cheryl Kirk. The work behind the scenes to host a tournament of this magnitude is extensive. From hotel arrangements, to transportation, to the awards, to the coordination of so many moving parts and pieces, it’s mission accomplished.
Thanks to the International Racquetball Federation team under the leadership of President Osvaldo Maggi and Secretary General Mauro Grandio that included the broadcast team, desk staff, and referees from nine countries.
Staff
This dedicated and talented team does a magnificent job and continues to raise the bar at each and every IRF Event: Osvaldo Maggi (Argentina), Mauro Grandio Buzeleh (Argentina), Pablo Berriel (Argentina), Adrián Macrino (Argentina), Sebastian Digón (Argentina), Veronique Guillemette (Argentina), Nicolas Florio (Argentina), Dean Schear (USA), Gary Mazaroff (USA), Gustavo Farell (USA/Uruguay), and Samuel Schulze (USA).
Referees
The referees are the unsung heroes of each event, officiating many hours a day to ensure that matches have experienced referees and athletes never have to think about being referees themselves. Thanks to María Paz Muñoz (Ecuador), Jaime Martell (Mexico), Brenda Laime (Bolivia), Diana Aguilar (Mexico), Ricardo Gonzalez (Mexico), Iván Valdéz (Mexico), Fabián Torres (Colombia), Francisco Gómez (Colombia), Germán Coppolecchia (Argentina), Roland Keller (Bolivia), Glenn Martineau (USA), and DJ Mendoza (USA).
IRF sponsors Gearbox, Pro Kennex, and Splathead, who contribute significantly to IRF competitions. You are so very much appreciated!
Joe Hall of Splathead provided shirts for the delegations and the IRF referees/staff. He also designed the fabulous event logo that made its way onto the shirts, pins, and bag tags that are now collectors’ items!
In-kind sponsors and contributors PowerShot Strings, UT Health Center San Antonio, Pinnacle Sign Team, Inc., and BR Bleacher Rentals. Also, the Playa Bowl food truck who put more healthy ingredients into our bodies than we (okay, some of us) thought was even possible.
James Perez, Gloria Escobar, and Five Star Driver Networks staff members for the friendly and reliable shuttle transportation between the club and the four host hotels. The schedule smoothed out nicely as competition began, and the drivers enjoyed getting to know the athletes (and vice versa).
The staffs of the four host hotels – Staybridge Suites, Fairfield Inn, Home2Suites, and Hampton Inn. Thank you for your hospitality!
The Thousand Oaks YMCA staff members, the volunteers at the club, and the local families who were on hand to pitch in and to enjoy the matches and the international atmosphere created by the 19 country delegations in attendance.
Sam Hojat, Marcus Zuniga, Luis Garza, and Pedro Garza who helped immeasurably with behind-the-scenes tasks and systems at the YMCA. A specific shout-out to Pedro (aka El Hombre) who designed and constructed the beautiful medals stand for the awards ceremony!
Yali Gonzalez, Delia Gutierrez, Nidia Funes, and Megan Barrington were the Dream Team who assembled 200 welcome bags and organized 400 tournament shirts into categories and sizes.
Alamo City Racquetball Association President Mike Cantu did a great job as emcee (MC!) at the Opening Ceremonies on Friday, August 23rd.
Megan Barrington deserves a very special thank you for the many things she did to make a huge difference. She is the epitome of “Yes! Now, what’s the question?” Megan coordinated key aspects of Opening Ceremonies and also operated a sale table throughout the event time period to assist USA Racquetball with souvenir shirt sales. In addition, she sold other items (keychains and popsicles!) that she herself provided to help raise funds for Texas members of the U.S. Junior Team (including her own son Noah Jackola) who will be traveling to the IRF World Junior Championships in Guatemala City in December. And, cupcakes turned up at just the right time for Sandy Rios’s birthday on 8/28!
Every team needs its cheerleaders! Team USA family members were on hand to encourage and support our athletes: Rhys Andersen, Sam Bredenbeck, Darold Key, Sam Lawrence, Jules Lowe, Nancy Manilla, and Victor Manilla.
Nidia Funes and Cindy Tilbury both flew in from California to assist with logistical tasks and to cheer on Team USA.
The San Antonio Sports Commission (Tony Benke and crew) sent local volunteers to assist with opening ceremonies and closing awards set-up, teardown, and logistics. Such hard workers, so gracious.
UT Health Center San Antonio medical providers were present the entire time to ensure any injuries would be professionally treated.
To Adult Team uniform sponsor Nike APS’s Kevin Cowley (a true friend and a pleasure to work with) and his team including Shane, thanks for the outstanding assistance! Teaming up with Nike APS were Lynn and Kevin Yeazell and their staff members at Response Graphics & Embroidery of Plainfield, Illinois, who supported the U.S. Team’s uniform needs in the days leading up to departure for San Antonio.
Aimee Roehler who posted the Daily Blogs and photos as they were sent over as well as the numerous social media updates covering the event. Great job, Aimee!
Last but not least, warm thanks go to the delegations and athletes of the 19 countries who attended this IRF World Championships. It was an honor and a pleasure to welcome and serve them in San Antonio, Texas, USA!
For your reading pleasure, USA Racquetball Daily Blogs will resume December 5th when the U.S. Junior National Team takes the world stage at the IRF World Junior Racquetball Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala.
In the meantime, we would be honored to have your support for the U.S. Adult and Junior National Teams with a tax-deductible contribution. Your assistance is vital to the players and coaches as they prepare to represent the United States in international competition, this year and next. Funds are primarily used to support the coaching team’s travel and accommodations in support of Junior Team USA.
Thank you from the U.S. Adult and Junior Team athletes and USA Racquetball!
GO TEAM USA!!