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Collin Matiza Sports Editor
AHMED Hassan is the winner of the inaugural Belgravia Sports Club’s Club Championship squash tournament. Hassan, who is ranked among the top five squash players in this country, claimed the first step on the podium after beating Malvin Mubure 3-1 in the final of the tournament which was recently held at Belgravia Sports Club in Harare.
One of the country’s top players, Mike Lawton, settled for third place.

Brian Beckout won the B Section of this tournament when he beat Cosmas Mukuna 3-1 while the bronze medal went to Tinashe Hufa.
In Section C, James Muza was the top dog after he accounted for Tino Mukuna 3-1. Simbarashe Mukorera took third place.

And as expected, Yvonne Mubure walked away with the women’s Section A title while her younger sister Polite was crowned the champion in the B Section.

The Mubure sisters were emulated by Innocent Mukumba who emerged as the top junior player at this tournament which was bankrolled by a local bedding company Oldlock.

Tinotenda Maswi was the winner of the juniors’ B Section while Callumm Lawton and his brother Harry were the youngest players in the juniors’ A and B sections respectively.

The most improved player in the juniors’ A Section was Tafadzwa Mushunje.
Mashumba Mukumba, one of the tournament’s organisers, said the event was “a huge success” as it was keenly contested by all the competitors.

More than 40 players took part in this tournament.
“We would also like to thank Hui Xing of Oldlock for sponsoring the prizes and we hope to do better in our next tournament. In, fact this was the first of the many tournaments we would like to stage this year in our continued efforts to promote and develop the sport of squash in Zimbabwe,” Mukumba said.

Mukumba is also the director of the Zimbabwe Squash Academy which is based at Belgravia Sports Club and has of late been in a crusade to recruit more junior players for the academy.

He, in fact, has a passion for junior development in squash and has managed to lure a number of less privileged school children from Harare’s high-density suburbs of Kuwadzana, Glen View and Budiriro who are now playing the sport.

The Zimbabwe Squash Academy is also the home of young, talented players from Chitungwiza and Norton.
“We are still facing some challenges at the academy and they include sponsorship, and we are appealing to corporate world or former squash players to come on board and help us to make the academy grow,” Mukumba said.