Junior Team USA Preparing to Compete in Guatemala City, Guatemala!

USA Racquetball

The U.S. Junior Team Delegation is finishing up their preparations and getting ready for their exciting trip to represent the USA at the 35th IRF World Junior Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala, December 6-14, 2024.

Upon arrival, the goals will be to recover and settle in at the host hotel, get adjusted to altitude, buy plenty of bottled water, and practice at the club.

Meet the Athletes and Staff

• 37 junior athletes ranging from 22 years to 8 years old

• 8 U.S. Junior Team Staff members

• 51 parents, siblings, friends, and support staff eager to be there for the Team

That’s 96 in the delegation!

The 37 athletes come from states: California (16), Missouri (6), Texas (5), Oregon (3), Iowa (2), Illinois (1), Minnesota (1), Nevada (1), New York (1), Tennessee (1)

Racquetball players and fans across the country, get ready to cheer on the 2024-25 U.S. Junior Team!

World Cup (21/18/16)

Eshan Ali (CA)
Ella Boaz (MO)
Iain Dunn (OR)
Annika Fiedler (OR)
Benjamin Horner (IA)
Ava Kaiser (MN)
DJ Mendoza (TX)
Victoria Rodriguez (CA)
Naomi Ros (TX)
Nathan Rykhus (CA)
Annie Sanchez (OR)
Paul Saraceno (CA)
Cole Sendrey (TX)
Aanshi Thakur (CA)
Montserrat Torres (IL)

Esprit Cup (14/12/10)

Yana Alegria-Gonzalez (TX)
Sarah Bawa (CA)
Alexis Boyko (MO)
Reyansh Chandel (CA)
Shreya Chandel (CA)
Nyasa Gupta (CA)
Scott Haacke (NY)
Zane Horner (IA)
Noah Jackola (TX)
Ryan Joeckel (MO)
Ava Leister (TN)
Vaishant Mangalampalli (CA)
Sloka Marivada (CA)
Jasur Pridatko (CA)
Sameera Rai (CA)
Aaradhya Raja (CA)
Ayan Sharma (CA)
Aarya Shetty (CA)
Addie Strobach (MO)
Nicolas Suarez (MO)
Dhruv Vemulapalli (CA)
Grant Williams (MO)

U.S. Junior Team Coaches/Staff

Robbie Collins - Head Coach (HI)
Jen Meyer - Esprit Coach (CO)
George Bustos - Assistant Coach (TX)
Pablo Fajre - Assistant Coach (CA)
Bobby Horn - Assistant Coach (CA)
Adam Manilla - Assistant Coach (CA)
Dr. Meghan Rohde – Sports Physical Therapist (NH)
Cheryl Kirk - Team Leader (IL)

Joe Hall (TX) and Cindy Tilbury (CA) will be there supporting the team as well!

Timeline

Arrivals 12/4-10
Practice 12/5-6
Matches 12/7-14
Awards Ceremony 12/14
Departures 12/15

Good Stuff to Know

As you get ready to fall in love with this Junior Team and follow their experiences in Guatemala City via social media and the Daily Blogs, our objective will be to make you feel like you’re there with the Team. Let’s get started:

Time – same as U.S. Central time
Altitude – 4,920 ft. above sea level
Weather – 76 deg. day/63 deg. in evening
Currency – Quetzal (same as the national bird)) 1 USD = 7.72 GTQ

Match Format: The scoring will be best of 5 games to 11 points, all games won by 2 points. Rally scoring (a point scored on every rally regardless of server or receiver winning the rally) will be used.

Official Ball: Gearbox Sleek Black

Support for the Junior Team

WIS Inventory Solutions has stepped up in a big way again this year, and we are so grateful for their support and encouragement. Thank you!

Splathead became the Junior Team’s Official Uniform Sponsor last year. Joe Hall is again providing a full uniform package at no charge (wait until you see the design!) to every athlete competing in Guatemala City and to the coaching staff as well. This is a significant gift to USA Racquetball, the athletes, and their families, and we can’t say enough about Joe’s partnership.

So, it’s expensive when you add up flights, hotels, meals, entry fees, etc. Some of the players are taking advantage of a fundraising effort organized by USA Racquetball. Tickets from all who donated will be entered into a drawing for a $500 cash prize.

Organizations and individuals are stepping up to help athletes and their families in their local areas. If anyone reading this article wishes to explore contributing on a personal or professional level to the Team and/or any of the individual athletes, contact Cheryl Kirk at cherylkkirk@aol.com. She’ll send you in the right direction!

To contribute to the costs for sending the coaches and staff in support of our U.S. Junior Team athletes, please consider a gift to Team USA’s Fundraising Drive, currently underway!

Donate here: https://donate.givedirect.org/?cid=16236&n=647392.

So, it’s almost here! As mentioned above, mark your calendars and read more in the Daily Blogs that will be published on USA Racquetball’s website and social media pages. The Daily Blogs will connect you with our Junior Team athletes’ IRF World Juniors experience beginning Thursday 12/5 and concluding Sunday 12/15.

GO TEAM USA!!

USA Racquetball