Paul Walters appointed 2017 World Championship Director

The stakeholders of the 2017 PSA Men's and Women's World Championships have announced the appointment of Paul Walters as the Championship Director.

The Championships will be staged in Manchester, England from the 9-17 December, making it the only city to host concurrent world championships twice and the first to do so since 2011. The event will see almost 200 of the world's best squash players descend on the UK’s squash capital for the week-long tournament which will build upon the highly successful staging of the Men’s and Women’s Championships in 2008 and the Men’s World Championship in 2013.

The 2017 PSA Men's and Women's World Championships will be staged at the National Squash Centre before moving to Manchester Central from the quarter-final stage onwards. Furthermore, for the first time ever, the prize purse for the pinnacle event on both the Men's and Women's tours will be equal, with the winners set to take home over $45,000 each.

England Squash Director and Chair of the Championship Stakeholder Board, Eamonn O’Rourke said, “Following the success of the 2008 and 2013 Squash World Championships which Paul led, we are delighted once again to be working with Paul to deliver the Championships to an unprecedented level. Already we have pushed the boundaries with delivering both the Men’s and Women’s event concurrently, and ensuring equal prize money.”

“England Squash, Manchester City Council, UK Sport and the Professional Squash Association share an ambitious vision to deliver a hugely successful and memorable championships that widens the reach and appeal of the sport,” said Walters.

“It’s a great privilege to be working with these stakeholders to help deliver a wonderful showcase for squash at such an exciting time for the sport.”

internationalSPORTgroup has a proven track record of delivering world-class sporting events including three successful world championships alongside the AJ Bell British Squash Grand Prix staged annually in Manchester and the Allam British Open, the world’s oldest squash championships promoted in partnership with England Squash.