Sobhy Delighted to Start Floridablanca Campaign on International Women’s Day

Sobhy, who takes on a qualifier in round one, is excited to take part in the tournament, and the charismatic World No.6 hopes that the tournament beginning on International Women’s Day will help to encourage women to get involved in the sport.

“The fact that the first round of the tournament coincides with International Women’s Day is brilliant because it showcases women’s squash, which will increase the visibility of the sport in this region of the world and encourage more females to get on court,” said Sobhy.
 
“Squash is such an amazing sport that we want to continue to grow. The goal is to get as many people involved and females to play, so it is such a benefit to start the tournament on International Women’s Day.”

The official campaign for the 2017 International Women’s Day is to #BeBoldForChange, which is calling on the masses to help forge a more inclusive, gender equal world.

Since the historic merger between the Professional Squash Association (PSA) and Women’s Squash Association (WSA) on January 1, 2015, the number of World Series tournaments offering equal prize money has increased to five – including the PSA Dubai World Series Finals – while the 2017 Men’s and Women’s PSA World Championships will be held side-by-side in December, with equal prize money on offer.

And Sobhy is fully behind the steps being made to achieve gender equality across the professional ranks, saying: “Gender equality is unbelievably important nowadays because women are working just as hard as men, so why do women have to settle for anything less?

“This movement for gender equality is a major topic of issue in the world at the moment, so to have squash tournaments and promoters push for equal prize money between the women and men is fantastic to see.

“The trend for equality is growing among tournaments with multiple World Series events having equal prize money and the World Championships in Manchester offering equal prize money, so it’s great to be associated with an organisation that promotes this movement.”

Sobhy will be appearing in Colombia for the first time in her career and is seeded to meet Malaysia’s eight-time World Champion Nicol David in a blockbuster final on March 11.

The 23-year-old is eagerly anticipating the tournament as she looks to claim her first PSA World Tour title since September 2015.

“I have been wanting to go to Colombia ever since I was a junior in squash because I’ve heard so many great things about the country, so I cannot tell you how excited I am to play in the Ciudad de Floridablanca,” she said.

“Thank you to the promoters and Squash Colombia for making this event happen. They have had a few men’s tournaments in Colombia before, so it is amazing to see that they are now having such a lucrative women’s event.”

PSA Chief Executive Alex Gough said: “The fact that the Ciudad de Floridablanca is the first standalone women’s tournament outside of a World Championship to be broadcast live on SQUASHTV and Eurosport Player is a huge boost for the women’s game.

“We are also delighted that the Ciudad de Floridablanca will take place on International Women’s Day and feel that the campaign’s goal for a gender equal world is in line with our efforts to enhance the standing and earning opportunities of the women’s game.

“Since the merger with the WSA over two years ago, the PSA have made great strides in reducing gender inequality and we remain committed to achieving parity.”

The Ciudad de Floridablanca take place between March 8-11 and fans can get involved in the conversation by using the official tournament hashtag: #PSAFloridablanca

Tickets for the PSA W70 tournament can be purchased by contacting tktspsafloridablanca@gmail.com