Team USA earned six medals at the 2023 Pan American Championships–including a women’s team gold medal–as the U.S. secured qualification for the 2023 Pan American Games, June 4-10, in Cartagena, Colombia.
The 2023 Pan Am Championships served as an important stepping stone for Team USA in its pursuit of another podium-topping performance at the upcoming quadrennial Pan Am Games in Santiago, Chile, this November. Results in the team competition determined qualification for the Santiago Games with the top eight teams booking their tickets to Santiago.
The U.S. men’s and women’s teams featured a mix of experience and youth. The U.S. women included world No. 13 Olivia Blatchford Clyne, world No. 16 Sabrina Sobhy, twenty-year-old world No. 56 Marina Stefanoni and two-time U.S. junior champion Caroline Fouts. The U.S. men featured world No. 38 Shahjahan Khan, world No. 52 Timmy Brownell, world No. 76 Chris Gordon and world No. 80 Spencer Lovejoy.
The U.S. women topped the podium in the team competition, fulfilling their top seeding. The U.S. defeated Mexico in the quarterfinals, Barbados in the semifinals, and edged two seeds Canada 2-1 in the final courtesy of wins from Sobhy and Stefanoni.
Stefanoni and Fouts medaled in all three competitions–including as an unseeded doubles tandem. The pair both reached their first Pan American individual semifinal where they met each other in the top half semifinal. Stefanoni defeated her teammate to reach the final where she lost out against Canada’s world No. 19 Hollie Naughton.
The U.S. men clinched their place at the Santiago Games with a crucial quarterfinal victory over Mexico with wins from Timmy Brownell and Spencer Lovejoy. The U.S. men exited the team draw against world No. 2 Diego Elias and Peru in the semifinals. Brownell and Lovejoy collected a second bronze medal in the doubles competition.
“This group went to Colombia with the goal of qualifying the Pan American Games up against some difficult teams, and we accomplished that goal,” said Ong Beng Hee, the Ganek Family US Squash Head National Coach. “Credit to Marina and Caroline for some terrific individual performances and the entire women’s team for their well-deserved gold medal. Spencer and Timmy came through when we needed them most against Mexico in the team competition. A big thanks to Coach Brigit for all of her hard work and support in Colombia, and to Gordo for his leadership as team captain.”
Team USA now shifts focus to the Pan American Games, the highest level of international competition for U.S. squash professionals, where the U.S. will look to top the medal table for a third consecutive games.