Sarah Elizabeth Fitz-Gerald AM (born 1 December 1968) is an Australian former professional squash player who won five World Open titles – 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001 and 2002. She ranks alongside Janet Morgan,

Nicol David Malay titles#Datuk, Datuk Nicol Ann David (born August 26, 1983) is a Malaysian retired professional squash (sport), squash player. She was the world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months, ceding the ranking in September 2015 ...

Susan Devoy Dame Susan Elizabeth Anne Devoy (born 4 January 1964) is a New Zealand former squash player and senior public servant. As a squash player, she was dominant in the late 1980s and early 1990s, winning the World Open on four occasions. She serve ...

, Michelle Martin and Heather McKay as the sport's greatest female players of all time.

Career

Fitz-Gerald was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, a hotspot for squash talent. In 1987, she won the female World Junior Championship and was the Australian Junior Female Athlete of the Year. It was also during this year that she represented

at the 1987 Women's World Team Squash Championships, finishing runner-up to England. In 1992 she was selected once again to represent Australia in the 1992 Women's World Team Squash Championships and this time Australia became the world champions. Remarkably, Fitzgerald would go on to win a total of seven World Team Championships. She won numerous titles in the early 1990s, but 1996 proved to be her breakthrough year. She beat

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

's Cassie Jackman in the World Open final. The next two years she beat the resurgent Michelle Martin in successive finals. The next two years did not bring the same level of success, owing largely to knee

surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

. In 2000, she lost an epic semi-final against Carol Owens. However, she came back in 2001 to beat

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

's Leilani Joyce emphatically 9–0, 9–3, 9–2. 2002 saw her win her last World Open, beating Natalie Pohrer 10–8, 9–3, 7–9, 9–7. She also won a gold medal at the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Manchester, England, ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

. In January 2004, Fitz-Gerald was awarded the

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM) for her achievements and services to women's squash, and the promotion of

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

and a healthy lifestyle. She was Chairwoman and President of the

Women's International Squash Players Association The Women's International Squash Players Association (WISPA) was the governing body for the women's professional squash circuit between 1983 and 2011. The WISPA World Tour involved over 80 tournaments annually worldwide. Over 200 players were re ...

from 1991 to 2002. In 2010, she was inducted into the

Sport Australia Hall of Fame The Sport Australia Hall of Fame was established on 10 December 1985 to recognise the achievements of Australian sportsmen and sportswomen. The inaugural induction included 120 members with Don Bradman, Sir Don Bradman as the first inductee and ...

. Fitz-Gerald announced her retirement from the Women's International Squash Players Association (WISPA) world tour in February 2003. In 2010, she came out of retirement to be part of the Australian team that won the gold medal at the 2010 Women's World Team Squash Championships. In 2018, she won her fourth World Masters title.

Career statistics

Professional Tour Titles (60)

All results for Sarah Fitzgerald in WISPA World's Tour tournament

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitz-Gerald, Sarah 1968 births Living people Australian female squash players Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games gold medallists in squash Commonwealth Games silver medallists in squash Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in squash Squash players at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Squash players at the 2002 Commonwealth Games World Games gold medalists for Australia Medalists at the 1997 World Games Members of the Order of Australia Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees Squash players from Melbourne Sportswomen from Victoria (state) Medallists at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games 20th-century Australian sportswomen 21st-century Australian sportswomen

Career

Career statistics

Professional Tour Titles (60)

See also

References

External links