S'PORE SQUASH SEEKS A NEW DIRECTION

Leadership disappointed with unexpected exits but committed to find fit for success

- Melvyn Teoh

The Singapore Squash Rackets Association (SSRA) has been dealt a double whammy ahead of the Dec 9-20 SEA Games, with head coach Jamie Hickox and SSRA-Marigold Podium Scholar Cassandra Ong both parting ways with the organisation.

At end-April, Hickox quit after nearly 13 months in the role, with national assistant coach Gurshan Singh helming the Singapore side as they look to build on the two silvers from the 2019 edition in the Philippines.

Three months later, Ong ended her three-year scholarship after barely a year, with the SSRA citing injury and travel woes as reasons for her decision to quit the sport. The 24-year-old is based in the United States and was one of the sport's two Marigold scholars.

SSRA general manager Alex Wan told The Straits Times: "For us at the association, we always believe that there's no point forcing something on to her if her heart is not there.

"When she first played in the Singapore Squash Open (November 2024), she was very unknown, and she put up a really good performance which caught the attention of many people.

"I think for many, it was like, 'Wow, there is a Singaporean who is that good', and that kind of lifted the spirits among the squash community quite a bit."

Ong, who declined to comment when contacted, was born in Singapore but lived in California in the US, where she was part of the squash team at Stanford University.