As Squash BC continues to celebrate its 50th anniversary, we also want to reflect on the incredible individuals and moments that have shaped Squash BC. Over the past five decades, volunteers, coaches, donors, athletes, and community members have played a vital role in building a thriving squash community in British Columbia. To honour their contributions, we are introducing a series of spotlights throughout the rest of the 2024/25 season to recognize their dedication and impact.

Volunteer Spotlight: Tomos Edmonds

Our first spotlight is Tomos Edmonds, recipient of the 2024 Kevin Kydd Junior Service Award. The Kevin Kydd Junior Service Award is presented in Recognition of a Player, Coach, Volunteer, or Sponsor who has unselfishly inspired, coached, or mentored junior squash players in BC. This award was donated and started by Paul King and his family.

Tomos has been hugely influential in driving the junior movement in Kelowna, BC at Global Fitness and has dedicated his evenings to coaching youth in Kelowna. Tomos has been very active the past few years and has demonstrated leadership and initiative since there isn’t a dedicated squash coach to do this. A few of his achievements include:

  • Acting Kelowna Representative for Okanagan Squash and organization support of the Okanagan Squash League with over 100 players.
  • Directed the successful return of the Summerland Squash Tournament with 56 participants,
  • Co-directed the 2024 KemTek Kelowna Squash Tournament 𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 which included an amateur event with 80 participants, and a Professional Squash Association (PSA) tour ‘9’ event showcasing 24 players from over 10 countries with rankings as high as 80th in the world. Tomos also had the opportunity to participate in the PSA Challenger event as a local wildcard player! 
  • Organized and coached the Women’s Squash Week initiative, with nearly 30 new players and leading to a full beginner women’s draw in the Kelowna Squash Tournament.
  • Ran summer junior squash camps with support from Pacific Xplore Sports and Global Fitness and Racquet Centre.
  • And most meaningful to him, launched and now coaches the junior squash academy in Kelowna, with 2 groups training weekly. 

Squash BC was able to present Tomos his award at the 2024 BC Open at Jericho Tennis Club. When asked what this award meant to him he said:

“It’s extremely exciting to have been recognized for this. My coach in Wales did the same thing and he was the inspiration for me to continue. Without his dedication and valuable life lessons that came along with coaching squash, I wouldn’t be who or where I am today. Being able to see the development in squash is amazing and will always bring a smile to my face. No matter what, keep following your passion no matter what it is, and that will bring you happiness – every minute I am on court with the juniors I have the biggest smile on my face; I only notice this when I think back as time flies on the court with them. I’m very excited to continue this journey.”

Squash BC once again congratulates Tomos on this well-deserved recognition and looks forward to continuing collaborating with him! 

Join Us in Shaping the Next 50 Years

We invite everyone to join us in celebrating this historic milestone and participating with us. Whether you take on one of our “50 for the Future” Challenges on our social media pages, contribute to the $50K for 50 Years fundraiser, or share stories of your own squash journey, your involvement makes a difference.

Let’s honour the legacy of Squash BC by working together to build an even brighter future for our sport. Stay tuned for more spotlights and updates as we continue this celebratory journey.