But from the sidelines in front of my laptop, I'm again struck by the global nature of the sport - how widespread it is played, and how popular it is in different corners. These past worlds, for example, featured not only England but women's teams from a diverse group of nations as Malaysia, Egypt, Guatemala, and Colombia - in addition to cross-sport competitive stalwarts as the U.S., Australia, and Germany. Beyond that, the current top-ranked women's player is from Malaysia, and the top 20 features players from India, Guyana, Hong Kong, and Ireland. The men's side is equally diverse with Egypt, France, Spain, Switzerland, and Colombia represented.
Why is this sport not in the Olympics yet? With such a diverse range of nations participating, and a long history of official competition, this sure feels like a fit. Sure, the World Squash Federation has bid for inclusion consistently, and will again, but it's an indictment on the Olympic Committee that it hasn't pulled the trigger yet. With Thomas Bach's recent hints at possibly accepting more sports in future Games, there should be hope. What fun it would be to see smaller countries - like Egypt and Malaysia - have some real competitive exposure on that stage. I, for one, am rooting for them.