Japanese star keen for success at Golden Open

Japanese squash professional Risa Sugimoto is hopeful of going one better against a crack field at this weekend’s annual Northern Star Golden Open.

Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s premier squash tournament this year features players from nine different countries who are chasing $6000 prizemoney in each of the women’s and men’s divisions.

Sugimoto is fresh off an epic final of the South Australian Open in Adelaide, when the 30-year-old was beaten in five games by Hong Kong’s Toby Tse (9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 11-8).

This week Sugimoto has focused on her recovery before her opening round on Friday, when she will have to win two games to make it through to the semifinals.

“In last week’s tournament, I was lucky enough to perform better than I previously had been, making it through to the finals,” Sugimoto said.

“This week, I want to work through my fatigue and try to perform through my fatigue to allow me to perform at my best on the first day of the tournament, which is hard with two matches to win.”

Sugimoto is hoping to use the Goldfields event to boost her ranking which will assist her chances in getting a call-up for the 2026 Asian Games.

“I am aiming to get my PSA ranking inside the world top-100,” she said.

“Next year I want to qualify for the Asian Games with the target of winning a medal.”

The No.4 seed, Sugimoto will take on Ka Huen Leung from Hong Kong in her first round.

Sugimoto is enjoying the contrast between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and her hometown Kyoto.

“It’s very relaxed, very quiet (in Kalgoorlie-Boulder) and good for recovery,” she said.

“In Kyoto there is so much traffic and people everywhere.”

The top-three women’s seeds are Helen Tang (China), Akari Midorikawa (Japan), and Wong Po Yui Kirstie (China).

Among a strong men’s field, Sri Lanka’s Ravindu Laksiri is the No.1 seed from Pakistan’s Hamza Khan, and the Chinese duo of Wailok To and Ming Hong Tan.

Queenslander Brendan MacDonald is the highest-seeded Australian at No.11.

The Northern Star Golden Open gets under way on Friday from 10am at Ray Finlayson Sporting Complex and continues on Saturday and Sunday.