Hi, I'm Timi Snell and I am a passionate under 15 girls junior squash player who lives on the tiny 5x3 miles remote Australian Territory of Norfolk Island, 2000 kilometres off the coast of Australia. 

Just over three years ago I followed my dad to squash and have never looked back. 2024 will be my third Oceania Junior Championships, second Australian Junior Open, and hopefully my second time on the wonderful Darling Downs Schools and the Queensland Schools team. Each time I represent, I grow as a player and a person.

In December 2022 I had my first international competition, attending the Oceania Junior Championships in Sydney, narrowly losing the plate event to a New Caledonian girl, Agat. From there I was hooked - the competition, the commaradrerie with my Oceania family and the entire learning journey is all exciting to me.

In May 2023 I was blessed to be part of the Darling Downs team for the Queensland Representative School Sport event held in Rockhampton as the Div. 1 representative. From here I was selected as Queensland's No. 4 to represent Queensland in Thornleigh, Sydney, at the Trans Tasman Challenge with New South Wales and New Zealand players in August.

In December 2023 I travelled to New Zealand to be part of the Festival of Squash which was the World Teams Event, The New Zealand Open and the Oceania Junior Open representing Norfolk Island - how exciting! Besides playing in front of a full complex we got to watch and chat with some of the best players in the world - always learning.

As my 2024 squash year beings, I am busy preparing for the Oceania Junior Championships and the Australian Junior Open in Melbourne in April, and then my next goal is to again represent Darling Downs at the Queensland Representative School Sport Championships in Acadia Ridge where I aim to again make the Queensland team.

All of this is preparing me for when Junior Commonwealth Games once again features squash, and Pacific Games in Tahiti 2027 where squash is on the programme. 

I am on the court training five days a week and am also busy doing cross training like walking and swimming.

Something else I would like to be able to do is to share my experiences and help enhance Junior Squash participation and knowledge on tiny Norfolk Island, hopefully being part of a bigger team attending these events.

As you can imagine, each of these events require travel from my home on Norfolk Island via Brisbane or Sydney, then onto the place of the competition. My mum or dad take a week off work to accompany me from Norfolk Island to Melbourne, Brisbane and New Zealand. This is very expensive so we are constantly fundraising for these trips, running cake stalls at the weekly Sunday Markets however this year it may be a bit more difficult with some serious family health commitments - my mum needs to travel to Brisbane for overdue shoulder surgery and my dad has a rare Auto-Immune disease which sometimes rears its ugly head.

Any assistance to help me get to Melbourne in April will go towards my airfares, accommodation and entry fees and will be greatly appreciated.

Furthermore, Donations of $2 or more are tax deductible through this fundraising campaign with the Australian Sports Foundation. 

I am truly grateful for all the support and encouragement I have received in my journey so far, there are so many to thank for getting me this far. Thank you for considering supporting me as I look to enjoy my sport, grow as a player and help promote and grow the wonderful sport of squash.

Thank you for being part of my team!

Timi