Born in England, Richard, a casual badminton and tennis player, started playing squash at age 13. He played his first junior tournament at age 14. By age 16, he decided to pursue a professional career in squash, and it became his lifelong passion. By age 19, he ranked in the top 30 in the UK and #107 in the world. He continued to play in tournaments and leagues in the United Kingdom, as well as throughout Europe for Professional Squash Association (PSA) tournaments. Richard has over 30 years of coaching experience and holds the highest level of coaching certification: an England Squash Level 3. He realized coaching was his calling after taking his first full-time resident teaching pro position at age 20 in England. Over the next 10 years, he held three head pro positions in Europe: two in England, and one in Switzerland. In 1995, Richard moved to California to become the head teaching pro at The Decathlon Club (Santa Clara), followed by the Pacific Athletic Club (Redwood City). He later joined Stanford University to coach the varsity teams. Now, Richard is heavily involved in developing junior players. He organizes tournaments for players at all levels, as well as an annual tournament for international professional players. Richard still competes: he won the U.S. National Age-Level Championships in 2002, 2003, 2005, and 2006, and he was a Finalist in 2000 and 2004. He was also a World Masters finalist in 2008 and won third place in 2001. Besides squash, Richard loves physical training and pushing the limits of endurance. He trained and completed his first triathlon (half-Ironman) in 2011 in San Francisco. His other hobbies include reading, golf, snowboarding, and cycling.

Aisling Blake, former world number 21 in the PSA World rankings, hails from Ireland and arrived in the Bay area late 2015. Prior to this, she played on the world tour as a professional player for many years, in addition to representing her country at various European and World team Championships. She trained alongside Nicol David (8-time World Champion) in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) under the tutelage of Liz Irving (former world number 2, current coach of Nicol David and other top players). As a junior, Aisling enjoyed success at the National and International level (semi-finals of the British Junior Open U-19, Irish number 1 in age groups). She went on to study business at Trinity College, Dublin before embarking on her professional career which took her all over the world competing in events. After retiring from the professional scene in 2015, she has focused on both junior and senior squash development in the US and is currently on the US Squash coaching staff as a West Coast Regional coach. The highs and lows of playing and competing at an elite level is invaluable to one’s growth as an individual and Aisling is very interested in passing on the tips and tricks she has learned to the next generation of squash players in the Bay area.

Samy Farrag was born in Germany and spent his adult life in Egypt. After high school, Samy spent many years in the military before deciding to play on the Professional Squash Tour. Following a successful professional career, he retired and was immediately employed by the Egyptian Federation to coach the National Team. Fifteen years ago, his focus turned to strength and conditioning, he quickly qualified as a personal trainer and holds certificates in strength training, nutrition and massage. He has since become the go-to physical trainer for the top squash players in the world who are based in Egypt (Hania El Hammamy #3, Tarek Momen 2020 World Champion, Faraes Dessouky #8, Marwan El Shorbagy #6). Samy joins Squash Zone as our strength and conditioning coach and is also available for squash lessons.

Bransten is a professional squash player and coach with over 20 years of playing experience and over 5 years of coaching experience. In the early stages of his junior career, he made it to the top 2 ranking position of every age category and claimed 2 big international championship trophies at the Dutch Junior Open and the Canadian Junior Open. He attended college in Philadelphia at Drexel University, where he received his BSBA in 2019. Since graduating, he's been coaching at various clubs and helping strengthen the California squash community. He is also a current player on the professional squash circuit.

Growing up in the Bay area, Zephan has been playing squash since his youth. He achieved a National ranking of US #10 in the U-19 age group and currently has a 6.8 US Squash rating. He has a Level 2 coaching certificate of 10 years of experience and work with top juniors in the Bay Areas including multiple US Junior #1s and National Champions.

Yassin started his junior playing career in Egypt with exposure to some of the best coaches in the world including Karim Ali (coach to Marwan El Shorbagy and several other top 10 players in the world). After moving to Cleveland in his teens, he excelled in the US Squash junior squash circuit. His coaching style is influenced by his youth in Egypt with a focus on movement. Yassin is also a NASM certified Personal Trainer and Nutritionist. He has coached several top Bay area juniors who are in the top 5 in their age groups in addition to coaching professional player Shahjahan Khan (no. 2 in the USA and top 50 in the world).

Shahjahan Khan is one of the top US National Squash Players and a current PSA world tour player, with the highest world ranking of #25. Born in Quetta, Pakistan and raised in the United States, Shah began his squash journey at the age of 12, quickly excelling by winning the U.S. Junior Open and the PSA Junior World Championships in 2013. He trains to represent himself individually and with team USA at various international competitions, including the WSF Men's World Team Championships and the Pan American Games. Shah combines his on-court skills, his ability to read the game and make strategic decisions, his mental resilience in facing the challenges of competitive squash, and his passion for mentoring young players, to serve as an ambassador for squash. He is committed to not only improving his own game, but to also help others along their journey, fostering a supportive squash community.

Evan is responsible for product strategy and development at Oracle NetSuite Global Business Unit. Prior to Oracle’s acquisition of NetSuite, Evan was CTO and Chairman of the NetSuite board. Before co-founding NetSuite in 1998, Evan spent eight years as a vice president at Oracle Corporation, where he focused on making powerful database technology more accessible to users. Evan also founded the BRCA Foundation supporting cancer research.  Evan was an avid tennis player, but, after being introduced to squash, the new sport became his passion. In 2008, Netsuite sponsored its first professional squash tournament — the Netsuite Open — and the tournament is now the most prestigious professional squash tournament on the West Coast. Evan combined his passion for squash and his philanthropic endeavors by starting Squash on Track.

Skilled professional with Bachelor's degree in Business, HR qualifications, and certifications in People Management. With a strong foundation in human resources and team leadership, I bring valuable insights into employee engagement and organizational success. In addition, I have an extensive experience in accounting and business administration. I am dedicated to personal discipline and growth, recently earning a 1 Dan Black Belt in Taekwondo. Always learning and always growing alongside my 2 amazing children.