US Team Update

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by Cheryl Kirk, U.S. Team Leader

U.S. Team Event Update -- XX IRF World Racquetball Championships

Location: Domo Complejo de Racquetball, Guatemala City, Guatemala

The U.S. Team numbering six athletes and four staff members will travel to Guatemala City just after Thanksgiving to compete at this long-awaited event. The last IRF Worlds was held in 2018 in San José, Costa Rica and the next would have been in Summer 2020 if not for the pandemic.

The U.S. Delegation is made up of the following 10 individuals:

Athletes

Men's Singles: 

#1 Alejandro Landa

#2 Jake Bredenbeck

Men's Doubles: 

Charlie Pratt and Alejandro Landa

Women's Singles:

#1 Rhonda Rajsich

#2 Kelani Lawrence

Women's Doubles:

Erika Manilla and Rhonda Rajsich

Staff

Jim Durham, Head Coach

Malia Bailey, Asst. Coach

Cheryl Kirk, Team Leader

Rodger Fleming, Athletic Trainer

Schedule

Arrivals Friday 11/26

Team Meeting Saturday 11/27

Practice Saturday 11/27 and Sunday 11/28

Round Robins Monday 11/29 through Wednesday 12/1

Main Draws seeded by Round Robin results Thursday 12/2 through Sunday 12/5

Finals and Awards Monday 12/6

Departures Tuesday 12/7

Miscellaneous Tidbits

  • Official Ball – Gearbox Sleek Black 

  • Nine courts. All glass back; floor is wood, side walls are concrete, front wall is panel.

  • The court floors are wood and finished with polyurethane. 

  • The complex is in a gated sports venue. 

  • The coldest time there is the end of November until January. Incidentally, “cold” means approximately 67-74 degrees F.

  • Altitude 4,920 ft. above sea level.

Qualifier: Besides being the first IRF World Championship since 2018, this event is also a qualifier for the Birmingham (Alabama, USA) World Games in Summer 2022. Sixteen men and sixteen women will complete the competition roster for the all-singles event. Qualifying to compete in The World Games is individual to each athlete in Men's and Women’s Open Singles divisions. Note: To achieve equality relative to global representation at the World Games, two positions in each of the men’s and women’s division will be populated by athletes from Europe and two from Asia. 

Live Streaming of matches will be provided when the main draws begin (see schedule above).

Daily Blogs will begin Saturday 11/27 and will be posted on usaracquetball.com and social media.

Donations in support of the U.S. Teams expenses to this and future events are gratefully accepted at https://donate.givedirect.org/?cid=15049&n=809

GO TEAM USA! 

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