DAVID PALMER WINS CANARY WHARF CLASSIC!

David Palmer is the Canary Wharf Classic Champion after defeating the current holder James Wilstrop in a gripping final. David came through 11/9, 12/10, 8/11, 11/7 in a match that lasted 65 minutes.

David adds the title to his British Open victory earlier in this season and this is actually David's 25th PSA title. Well done David!

It's great timing for us all at Black Knight/ Ashaway as we launch our new advertising campaign "The Player of the Decade Has Made His Choice".

For a full report, check out this link, see this link:
http://www.squash.me.uk/canarywharf/today09.htm

ASHAWAY, BLACK KNIGHT AND EDGBASTON PRIORY

Black Knight and Ashaway have recently set up a 2 year agreement with the squash and racketball team at Edgbaston Priory Club.

• Edgbaston Priory Club is firmly established as one of Britain’s premier racquet clubs. The club has 10 local league sides, 5 national club sides and is intent on establishing itself as a midlands base for many of the up and coming UK and the worlds top professionals.
• It is a private members club with over 3,000 members.
• The Club is used to holding major events - the Davis Cup, British Open and World Open Squash Championships.
• It is set in 12 acres of beautiful grounds with 29 tennis courts, 10 squash courts, heated indoor and outdoor swimming pools, spa, a licensed bar and restaurant.
• The Club dates back over 130 years and has nurtured 4 Wimbledon Champions and several National champions

Leyla Ogan (centre left) rackets manager has built up a new squash coaching team of Jon Tate and Mike Edwards (centre right), who are moving squash at the club forward. The junior development programme, has already produced an under 17 British Open champion in the form of Julianne Courtice, now sponsored by Black Knight/ Ashaway and more recently Anthony Graham National U19 champion (uses Ashaway Powernick 18 string)

The club is leading the way in racketball nationally - Rob Shay, the clubs racketball coach, is a former professional squash player who is now heavily involved with the National Racketball Association, the club now hosts the annual national racketball championships and has British champions in three age groups

Paul Smith (far right) of Black Knight / Ashaway UK said “We are proud to be associated with and support a centre of excellence for squash and racketball such as Edgbaston Priory. The team at the club are keen not to rest on their laurels and move the club forward, particularly with their high performance junior programme, this fits perfectly with our philosophy as we enter the UK market”

Edgbaston Website: www.edgbastonpriory.com

STOP PRESS - Player update - 22-Apr-09

Edgbaston (and England!) player Ant Graham is celebrating a double achievement! in Germany earlier this month Ant became the U19 European champion and simultaniously the U19 british number 1. Ant has recently signed with Ashaway and is currently using Powernick 18, he's pictured here with his european trophy. Ant was joined in Germany by Julianne Courtice (U17 british open champion) who is also based at the Priory and sponsored by Black Knight / Ashaway.

Other players using Ashaway strings at the Priory include: Victoria Lust (world no. 58) and Joel Hinds (recently turned full time professional).

ASHAWAY AT THE ALL ENGLAND

Ashaway are exhibiting at the All England Badminton Championships.

The Championships are at the National Indoor Arena, Birmingham 3rd - 8th March.

Please pop by our stand on the main concourse (far end, opposite end to the badminton england lounge). While you are there:

1. Enter our competition to win a Kevlar 8000SQ

2. See our latest range and a sneak preview of next seasons products.

3. See the revolutionary Final Prototypes of the New ZYMAX Strings

Jo Goode - 5 Top Tips

Jo Goode, Olympic Bronze Medalist and now Coach at the Ashaway Academy has compiled 5 Top Tips to quickly improve your game:

1. Return of Short Service
Make sure the back swing and follow though are as short as possible. This both encourages and enables you to take the shuttle as early as possible and adds control

2. Men's/Ladies Doubles Play
If you play the shuttle to the net, you MUST follow the shuttle in. This will encourage the opposition to lift.

3. Defense
When defending try to use a short back swing and short follow through. This will enable you to quickly recover and be ready for the next shot as soon as possible - Increasing your chances of regaining the upper hand.

4. Net Play
When at the net - keep your racket at eye level. For the shots you will be playing at the net, this is the optimum height and minimises the amount you will have to move your racket to hit the shuttle enabling you to take the shuttle as early as possible.

5. Maintain your key equipment
Have your racket re-strung and re-griped regularly, strings will slacken off and grips will wear. A good rule of thumb is to restring and regrip at least as many times a season as you play per week. Shoes, ensure they are not covered in dust or worn out.

Jo has recently been testing the new Zymax strings, due out in Summer 2009. See the link below to find out more.

Zymax is coming

SPONSORED PLAYER UPDATE

Ashaway players were in abundance at the recent English Nationals, we took the opportunity to catch up with a few a of them.

Rachel Howard is our Ladies Singles player and now a full time professional player, she has recently recovered from a stress fracture that had here out of action for nearly 12 months and is now building her fitness level and match sharpness to press on to where she belongs at the top of the england rankings and beyond.

Rachel is pictured here during here 1st round victory at the english nationals, due to her long term injury she was not seeded in the event and in the second round came up against the number 1 seed Liz McCann. The game was very tight and could have gone either way, but unfortunatley fitness eventually played a part and Rachel bowed out after a strong performance. Check out the Rachel Howard Blog here to see rachels progress this season

Mark Sellwood (pictured right)is a Mens Singles player and High Performance coach based in Birmingham. Mark is a consistent player (currently ranked at 13 in England) and a fantastic coach. Mark narrowly missed out on repeating his form from last year, missing out on a quarter final meet with Raj Ouseph, losing 22-20 in his 2nd round match.

Nathan D'Cruz (pictured left) is the new kid on the block, last year he was the Under 19 national champion and is now training full time at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes. Nathan is a real talent and a prospect for 2012. Nathan also narrowly missed out on a quarter final match up, loosing in a tense 3 set match to Harry Wright.

Also representing Ashaway at the Nationals were Caroline Westly, Ivor Griffiths, Neil White & Jo Dix.

Kirschbaum Now in the UK!

Kirschbaum is the worlds most experienced brand of poly strings and is now available in the U.K.

Kirschbaum String has signed an exclusive distribution deal with racket string specialists Goode Sport.

Kirschbaum started life 20 years ago producing string for racket manufacturers but with an ever increasing demand for poly string Kirschbaum quickly developed into a world leading string brand.

Kirschbaum has over 300 players on the ATP Tour and over 3500 contract players.

Spikey Shark and Proline II are the latest additions to the Kirschbaum range and offer all the benefits of poly string but with technical advancements for a softer more forgiving performance.

Roger Dalton, ERSA Pro Tour and Master Racket Technician recently tested a range of Kirschbaum strings and quotes the following:

The new Hybrix sets performed exceptionally well with little or no string movement. Good control aided by the multifilament crosses gave a comfortable feel.

Super Smash and Spiky Shark are as good as any Polys with no movement.

Proline II has superior tension hold and soft impact transmission.

Competion and Touch Turbo both have a softer feel, with little movement and easy stringing.

For details on the range see: http://www.ashaway.co.uk/index.php?page=category&category=24

For full Kirschbaum details contact kirschbaum@ashaway.co.uk or 01707 321397

Ashaway - On Facebook, come and join us!

We are building a facebook community, please join us:

- See photo's and videos of our contract players
- Be the first to hear of events
- Ask the experts a question on our forums
- Share the same community as our top sponsored players

Simply follow this link:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Ashaway/40735203646?ref=s
and click 'Become a Fan'

or

1. Log onto facebook
2. Search for 'ashaway'
3. Click 'become a fan'

We look forward to welcoming you.