Excerpt from New Dinerman Anthology, 'Selected Squash Writings'


December 15, 2014

This passage is excerpted from a chronicle of  the first squash court built in Mexico and its impact on the growth of the sport in that country.

    "From the very beginning, the game was a tremendous hit with the friends and business colleagues that visited the deVillafrancas, with the court in constant use at all hours of the day and night, especially on weekends, when every afternoon the property metamorphosed into a crowded and continuous celebration of the game, to the point where the family actually installed a swimming pool just yards from the court so that their guests could cool off while awaiting their turn on court! Because of the senior deVillafranca's status in the political and business communities, the playing group at this juncture was decidedly upper-crust: one noted USSRA officer in for a visit during that period vividly recalls his host gesturing to the several dozen guests thronging the grounds late one afternoon and commenting that  '80% of all the wealth in Mexico is right here on this lawn'.

      "During the 1968 Olympic Games, which were held in Mexico City, Mr. DeVillafranca approached Carlos and Raul Sanchez, who were members of the Mexican team in frontenis, which was a demonstration sport in those Games, and invited them to visit his home and give squash a try. Both became instant converts, and the latter would eventually attain a level of stardom (including a number of USSRA age-group championships) that was, however, eclipsed by the achievements of his nephew, Mario, who in 1979 would become the first Mexican to win the U. S. Nationals, jump-starting a WPSA pro career that saw him become a perennial top-five-ranked superstar, a finalist in the '82 Boston Open and the '89 North American Open and the '86 WPSA Championships winner via a 3-0 final-round victory over Michael Desaulniers in Toledo."


'Selected Squash Writings' AMAZON Link