Sport England team up with medical profession to launch Active Charter
By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor

Squash clubs have an amazing opportunity to play a leading role in delivering community health benefits .

 As part of the advice given to clubs who take part in World Squash Day, I have been encouraging the leaders in our sport to think about how best to market the health benefits of playing squash and racketball.

These benefits are well documented on an international level, and therefore fit perfectly with the global target of attracting one million new players to the sport over the next decade (or sooner).

Most nations experience similar health issues, with one third of all children now reaching the age of 11 showing signs of obesity.

This is clearly reaching epidemic proportions, as is the problem of adults failing to take any exercise at all when they reach their 40s and 50s and become prone to diabetes, heart disease and all the other issues associated with obesity.

This is where racketball comes in. I recently assisted in a project at Canterbury Squash Club in Kent designed to encourage people of 70-plus years (now known as U3A) to enjoy regular forays on to the squash court. They clearly found racketball easier to engage with than squash and all enjoyed the experience.

All squash clubs need to provide fun sessions aimed at that mid-life age bracket and encourage them to become more active before the rot sets in.

I know of several squash coaches who offer fitness classes for individuals who are recovering from strokes. Again, this is fantastic, groundbreaking stuff.

What the game needs to do is cement partnerships with the medical profession and begin dialogues with hospital and medical centres to find funding for delivering community health projects.

On a similar theme, Sport England have teamed up with the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) to launch the Active Practice Charter.

The charter inspires and celebrates GP practices that are taking steps to increase activity in their patients and staff.

Sport England claim that one in four people surveyed have confirmed that they would be more active if such a policy was recommended by a GP or nurse, and the charter includes a toolkit that will support GPs to raise the subject of activity with patients and achieve Active Practice status.

Sport England chief executive, Tim Hollingsworth, welcomed the charter’s introduction, saying: “Physical activity has a key role to play in helping people manage and improve their health and wellbeing.

“As trusted sources of information, GPs and practice teams have a real opportunity to start discussions that help it become the new normal in their community – for prevention as well as treatment.”

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – Henry Repeating Arms, an American manufacturer of classic rifles and shotguns, will sponsor NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor Cole Custer this weekend at Road America.

Named after Benjamin Tyler Henry, who invented and patented the Henry rifle in 1860, Henry Repeating Arms has two manufacturing facilities – one in Bayonne, N.J., and the other in Rice Lake, Wis., located approximately 290 miles northwest of Road America.

“Road America is a home race for us and we partnered with Cole Custer because of his success this season and because of the strong relationship we have with Haas Automation,” said Anthony Imperato, president and owner, Henry Repeating Arms. “We use made-in-America Haas CNC machine tools to manufacture our products, all of which come with a lifetime guarantee backed by our award-winning customer service.”

Custer is having a career year, leading the Xfinity Series with five wins and five poles. The victories have placed the 21-year-old from Ladera Ranch, Calif., into the NASCAR playoffs for the third straight season.

“We’re enjoying a lot of success on the track and moments like this are how we win off the track,” Custer said. “Henry Repeating Arms is a great customer of Haas Automation and we’re extremely proud to be representing them at Road America.”

Custer has made two career Xfinity Series starts at Road America, finishing in the top-10 each time. His best result at the 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course is fourth, earned in last year’s race.

“In road-course racing, the competition is more on the driver’s shoulders compared to your traditional oval-styled track,” Custer said. “You’re on the edge of your seat for the entire race, and even the smallest mistake can take you out of the race. I enjoy road-course racing and challenging my skills as a driver. I learned a lot in last year’s race at Road America and I’m looking forward to getting back there in my Henry Repeating Arms Ford Mustang.”

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – The No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang will feature a special paint scheme for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, honoring Jimmy Means’ No. 52 Alka-Seltzer Pontiac.

Means drove the iconic powder blue car in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

In its early days, Front Row Motorsports was originally known as Means-Jenkins Motorsports, stemming from a partnership between Means and current Front Row Motorsports team owner Bob Jenkins. Their relationship began with Jenkins sponsoring Means at Bristol with his local Taco Bell franchise, which led Jenkins to a partial ownership of Means’ race team. The team was active for one year before Jenkins separated and founded Front Row Motorsports.

McDowell’s No. 34 Ford will feature the famous light blue body with red and dark blue accents. Front Row Motorsports partner Dockside Logistics will serve as the primary sponsor for the race.

“Throwback weekend at Darlington is one of my favorites of the whole year,” McDowell said. “It’s fun to recreate some of the most well-known paint schemes throughout the history of our sport. Our owner, Bob Jenkins, has always admired Jimmy Means, and the Alka-Seltzer car is definitely a favorite of his. I’m really excited that we can honor their friendship with our No. 34 Dockside Logistics Ford.”

It’s a new week, which means it’s time for another edition of the SPEED SPORT Power Rankings. There is a new name at the top of the Rankings again this week! Who is it? Click below to find out.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Corey LaJoie will be piloting more than just the No. 32 Ford Mustang when the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 27.

Go Fas Racing sponsor Keen Parts/CorvetteParts.net will transform their usual paint scheme into a Scooby-Doo inspired Mystery Machine for the First Data 500, less than a week before Halloween.

“Scooby Doo was my favorite cartoon growing up, so when Tom and T.J. asked what I wanted to do for Martinsville, there was no doubt that I wanted to be driving the Mystery Machine,” said LaJoie. “They always have really cool themes behind their Halloween-weekend schemes and I’m excited to be part of this one and thankful for all that they do for our team.”

This will be the second year that the Corvette parts supplier has converted their sponsorship of the No. 32 at the October Martinsville event into a unique, eye-catching masterpiece – in celebration of Halloween.

Last fall, the Ohio-based company brought a purple and black Peanuts scheme that showcased one of the most recognizable characters known, Snoopy. The scheme instantly became a favorite by fans of all ages.

“We are super excited to present this paint scheme to Corey to run at Martinsville,” said longtime friend and sponsor of the team, T.J. Keen. “This cartoon was his favorite as a kid and I bet it still is today.  We cannot thank the team enough for letting us do these schemes and we hope you fans will enjoy it.”

MLS announced on Tuesday that it has awarded an expansion team to the city of St. Louis, swelling the leagues ranks to 28 clubs.

St. Louis' ownership group includes Enterprise Holdings Foundation president Carolyn Kindle Betz and other female members of the Taylor family, making it the first female majority-owned team in MLS history. The investor group is rounded out by World Wide Technology CEO Jim Kavanaugh, and Enterprise Holdings Executive Chairman Andy Taylor. The team will begin play in 2022 and the process for selecting the team name, badge and colors will begin immediately.

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"It is with great pride that we welcome St. Louis to Major League Soccer," MLS commissioner Don Garber said. "St. Louis is a city with a rich soccer tradition, and it is a market we have considered since the league's inception.

"Our league becomes stronger today with the addition of the city's deeply dedicated soccer fans, and the committed and innovative local ownership group led by Carolyn Kindle Betz, the Taylor family, and Jim Kavanaugh."

The announcement caps a process that amounted to a rollercoaster ride. The St. Louis bid looked dead back in 2017 when a city referendum that would have directed $60 million in new tax proceeds towards the construction of a stadium was defeated by voters. That setback led Paul Edgerley, who headed the investment group at the time, to cease his efforts to bring a team to St. Louis.

But last October, Kindle-Betz and other members of the Taylor Family got on board alongside Kavanaugh, who was part of the previous investor group. Thanks to a willingness to fund stadium construction almost entirely with private funds, and with a site located in the Downtown West district, St. Louis was back in the game. MLS announced in April that it had entered exclusive negotiations with St. Louis, and following a series of presentations, the last of which came three weeks ago at the MLS All-Star Game in Orlando, the decision was made to bring the Gateway City into the MLS fold.

"Our ownership group has come a long way since we first announced our bid last October at Mathews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club, and it's an incredible feeling to now be able to say, St. Louis is home to the first official majority female-led ownership group in MLS," Kindle Betz said. "Our MLS team and stadium will only add to St. Louis' renaissance currently underway and will provide us with a great opportunity to bring together many different segments of the community, uniting people in their love for the game."

The stadium is part of a major development project, which will include mixed-use retail and restaurants. According to the ownership group, no Tax Increment Financing (TIF) or any direct citywide tax investment will be needed to finance the stadium project. The stadium proposal specifies that only those purchasing tickets and items at the stadium will be paying any tax. The team will pay for all stadium maintenance, repair and upkeep.

MLS has long desired to have a team in St. Louis, given the sport's long history in the Gateway City. Five of the 11 players that defeated England at the 1950 World Cup were from St. Louis, and the city has produced 29 players and coaches who have been inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

The area's youth programs have helped develop several players into professionals, including MLS players Will Bruin (Seattle Sounders) and Joe Willis (Houston Dynamo), Tim Ream (Fulham) of the English Championship, rising star Josh Sargent (Werder Bremen) of the Bundesliga, and Becky Sauerbrunn (Utah Royals) of the NWSL and the FIFA World Cup champion with the U.S. Women's National Team.

In addition, many former MLS players are from St. Louis, including Taylor Twellman, Brad Davis, Chris Klein and Steve Ralston.