by James Zug
Deaths
Leonard A. Bernheimer died in March at the age of eighty-two. In age group play, Lenny won eight National Singles and seventeen National Doubles titles and played for Team USA at the 1977 World Teams. A born leader, he was co-director of the Boston Open 1971-1991, chair of the board of US Squash 1984-86 and founding chair of the board of SquashBusters 1996-2007. In 1993 he was awarded the President’s Cup and in 2012 was inducted into the U.S. Squash Hall of Fame.
David Body died in March at the age of eighty-four. David grew up in England and came to Los Angeles in 1969. An architect, he was a longtime leader of squash in southern California. A deep believer in international friendships, David played on the U.S. team in the Copa Wadsworth for three decades and played Basque pelota on U.S. squads in Argentina, France, Mexico and Uruguay.
Charles T. Crawford died in August at the age of ninety-three. Charlie Crawford grew up in Kansas and moved to New York in 1969. He served on the board of US Squash for decades and on the executive for eleven years, often advising on tax matters. In 2002 he received the W. Stewart Brauns Award for administrative contributions to the game.
Alan L. Fox died in April at the age of eighty-one. For decades the dynamic leader of West Coast squash, Alan Fox served on dozens of committees and traveled around the world for meetings and events. He directed two of the most important National Singles championships in history, the 1987 event in Los Angeles and the 1993 event in San Francisco. He chaired the board of US Squash 1993-95. In 1992 he was awarded the President’s Cup.
William B. Hartigan died in January at the age of thirty-four. From New Hampshire, Will was a top junior and a key member of the team at Cornell, graduating in 2012. With Michael Ferreira, he won the 2023 National Doubles. Playing at the Racquet & Tennis Club in New York, he was a versatile doubles player on both walls. He captured numerous club and invitational tournaments as well as three Century Doubles titles; he also reached the finals of the National Mixed Doubles and the National Father & Son.
Jeffrey Laikind died in October at the age of eighty-nine. Jeffrey Laikind was a member of Cornell’s first squash team in 1956 and earned bronze medals in squash at the 1981 and 1985 Maccabiah Games. He helped found StreetSquash in 1999 and served as chair of its board when the program opened its facility in Harlem. He was also a member of the original board of the College Squash Association when it was reformed in 2017.
Patrice McConnell Cromwell died in August at the age of sixty-two. Patrice Cromwell was a member of the U.S. women’s team that won the inaugural 1980 World Juniors tournament in Sweden. She played number one on Princeton’s team for three years and twice captained Princeton to a national team title. In 2010 she won a 40+ doubles title with her sister Alicia McConnell
Victor Seixas, Jr. died in July at the age of one hundred. Vic Seixas won fifteen Grand Slam tennis tournaments and played in what is now the U.S. Open a record of twenty-eight times. On the squash court, Seixas captured three national 40+ singles titles in 1964, 1965 and 1966, as well as a slew of invitational events around Philadelphia until he moved to San Francisco in the late 1980s.
Frank Stella died in March at the age of eighty-seven. The world-famous artist became an avid squash player in his forties. He helped his club, Park Place down on Wall Street, host the 1986 and 1987 U.S. Pro Softball Championships. In 1987 he was the tournament director of the U.S. Open, hosting it at a nightclub on 14th Street next to his studio. A longtime supporter of the Tournament of Champions, Stella donated the permanent trophy to the ToC in 2024.
Ann Dietrich Wetzel died in May at the age of ninety-two. Ann Wetzel won one National Singles title, after reaching the finals six previous times; and she captured four National Doubles titles with four partners. She started women’s squash at Penn and was head coach of the varsity team 1974-1992. One of the most honored women in American squash history, Wetzel was awarded the Achievement Bowl in 1972, inducted into the College Squash Association Hall of Fame in 1995 and in 2003 inducted into the U.S. Squash Hall of Fame.
Retirements
Yathreb Adel retired in October. Adel was a standout junior in Egypt, winning five British Junior Open titles and twice reaching the finals of the World Juniors. She reached world No.13 in 2020. Her best result in a major was getting to the quarters of the U.S. Open in 2018, in the process beating Nouran Gohar in five games.
Ben Coleman retired in January. From England, Coleman reached world No.43 in 2018. He notoriously made negative comments on social media after the 2013 U.S. Open announced equal prize money for women and men. He later apologized.
Shawn Delierre retired in September. Delierre reached world No.35 in 2013 and won seventeen PSA titles. He represented Canada at three Commonwealth Games and six World Teams. Delierre famously played extended matches, including the longest in pro squash history—with Leo Au in 2015—that lasted 170 minutes.
Andrew Douglas retired in August. Douglas, from Brooklyn, was an outstanding junior, winning two National Junior titles as well as a U.S. Junior Open BU19 triumph. Douglas sealed a victory for Team USA at the 2019 Pan American Games, giving the men their first-ever gold medal in the team event. At Penn Douglas played No.1 on the ladder for four straight seasons and twice led them to the finals of the team intercollegiates. He won the National Singles in 2023 and reached world No.48.
Nour El Tayeb retired in July. The Egyptian won the World Juniors in Boston in 2011 and reached world No.3 in 2018. Her biggest win came at the 2017 U.S. Open, when she and husband Ali Farag became the first married couple to capture the same major tournament on the same day.
Alexandra Fuller retired in January. The South African reached world No.22 in 2022.
Todd Harrity retired in July. The Philadelphian led both Episcopal Academy and Princeton to national team titles as well as winning the 2008 U.S. Junior Open BU19 title. Harrity captured the National Intercollegiate title as a sophomore, the first American-born student-athlete to do so since 1990. He won the National Singles in 2015, 2016 and 2019, reached world No.34 in 2022 and earned four medals at the Pan American Games. In 2018 Harrity made history becoming the first openly gay men’s professional squash player.
Saurav Ghosal retired in April. The Indian reached world No.10 in 2019. He led India to gold medals in the men’s team event in the Asian Games in 2014 and 2022 and earned three medals in the Commonwealth Games, including India’s first-ever singles medal in 2022.
Low Wee Wern retired in April. The Malasian reached world No.5 in 2014. She memorably reached the semis of the 2013 U.S. Open, beating Raneem El Welily 11-8 in the fifth in the quarters.
New Courts
Church by the Sea , Bay Harbor Island, FL—one singles
Lake Forest School, Lake Forest, IL—five singles courts
McCallie School, Chattanooga, TN—eight singles
Portland Community Squash, Portland, ME—two singles, one doubles
Princeton University, Princeton, NJ —fourteen singles
SquashBusters Lawrence, Lawrence, MA—eight singles
Steel City Squash, Pittsburgh, PA—seven singles, one doubles
Taft School, Watertown, CT—three singles