The CHA Massachusetts Racket Masters, the only FIR sanctioned tournament held in North America, return to the tour once again.
The third edition of this tournament, held from the 27th – 28th of April, looks to continue to build on the success of the past two years. The unique tournament offers the chance for North America’s finest racketlon players to pit their talents again some of the best from Europe.
Canada’s top two players Patrick Laplante and Jeremy Easterbrook will be the two biggest threats and are both likely to enter. Easterbrook is the current North American No.1 while Laplante is a former U21 World Champion.
In 2018, World No. 4 Dan Busby took home the Men’s A title, defeating Canada’s Laplante in the final. In the Women’s A there was a first elite-level title for America’s Katrin Maldre after she beat Carola Von Heimburg in the final.
“It probably has the most interesting tennis courts I’ve ever seen”
2018 champion Dan Busby said “As the only tour event in North America the tournament is well worth playing. Northampton is a lovely town and Smith College is a good venue.
“It probably has the most interesting tennis courts I’ve ever played on as the indoor courts are in the centre of a running track.
“It was nice to meet the passionate community of players in America – they were all super keen.”
Massachusetts Racket Masters Information
The tournament itself will take place in the vibrant college city of Northampton, Massachusetts. Northampton is home to lots of restaurants, independent shops and a thriving music scene.
Alongside that, Northampton is just two hours away from Boston, home of legendary sports teams the Boston Red Sox and Boston Celtics.
The tournament is held at Smith College Northampton in the Ainsworth Gymnasium. All facilities are on site as well as free parking. There are also several accommodation options a short distance away from Smith College including both hotels and Airbnb options.
The nearest airports to the tournament venue are Bradley International and Logan International. On Saturday night a player’s dinner will be hosted at a local restaurant in downtown Northampton.
The tournament is sponsored by Ping Pong Depot, Dunlop and Oliver.
The entry deadline for the tournament is Monday, 15th of April and you can enter the tournament here.
For more information please email tournament director Andy Stenson on astenson@frcps.org.
The full list of 2019 Racketlon World Tour events is available here.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
Image Credit: Andy Stenson