ISLAMABAD - Dickinson women's squash sophomore athlete Amna Fayyaz received some exciting news earlier this week as she has been selected to represent her home nation of Pakistan in the upcoming Commonwealth Games that will take place in Birmingham, England beginning on July 28th.
The Commonwealth Games are an international competition that takes place every four years among the 54 countries that make up the Commonwealth of Nations. The Friendly Games as they have also been called were first contested back in 1930 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. While there are only 54 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, 72 teams are currently allowed to compete in the games as a number of dependent territories have the opportunity to compete under their own flag as they do not get to take part in the Olympic Games. There are just six countries that have been involved in every iteration of the games and they are Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales.
Fayyaz is currently the top-ranked player in Pakistan and was a First-Team All-Mid-Atlantic Squash Conference this season for the Red and White, after posting a solid 15-5 record playing in the top spot. The native of Islamabad carried her momentum from a strong regular season into the postseason by winning three consecutive matches at the College Squash Association Team Championships. Fayyaz brought down the best players from St. Lawrence, Franklin & Marshall, and William Smith to help the Red and White secure a spot in the Walker Cup Final. Fayyaz will join Faiza Zafar as the women's squash representative for the Pakistan team.
'I am thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to represent my country" Fayyaz stated. "This has been a huge goal and dream of mine and I am excited to participate in a massive platform like this. I would like to thank my team at Dickinson and at home for all the support!"
New Red Devils head coach Richard Glanfield shared his praise of Amna saying "all of us within the Dickinson community are incredibly proud of Amna." He went on to add "this is a huge achievement for her. Not only in getting to represent her country but to do so at such a prestigious event as the Commonwealth Games. We wish her the very best of luck!"
