Henry bound for World Juniors

An exceptional leap of courage and a "give it a go" attitude has landed Henry Kross in the Australian Junior Men's Team to play at the Under 19s World Junior Squash Championships in Canada. It's considered the pinnacle junior event around the world and for the first time the 16-year-old from Parkes will be part of it as the country's youngest member of the team. Henry said this has been a goal of his for a few years. "I am really proud to have been selected in the Australian Junior Men's Team to play at the World Junior Championships in Canada," he said. "To be selected as the youngest team member and from out in the country is a huge honour." Trials for the side took place at the Australian Junior Open and Oceania Junior Championships last month, and for players to be eligible they had to play in the under 19s at the titles. Selectors pick the top four male and top four female under 19 players in Australia based on performances at these two national events. For Henry it nearly didn't happen. "I had to make the choice of competing up an age group or trying to win those titles in Under 17s," he said. Henry's mum had an accident in January, and his focus turned to helping out at home and supporting his dad. At the time he wasn't sure if he would play up an age group. "I would have liked a smoother lead-up, but was more focused on mum being ok and getting home from hospital in Sydney, and helping dad with our family and running the courts," he said. "But I decided to give it a try and if I didn't get selected, I'll have experience for next year. "Being younger and playing up meant my seeding wasn't the best, so I just had to wait and see if I did enough to impress the selectors." "I considered it last year, but we felt that I was still too young. I've just turned 16, so I'm still pretty young but thought I could mix it with the older boys and see how I go." His plan, whether he got selected or not, has always been to train hard and try to have a strong 12 months on court this year. He'll now need to work hard off the court too to fundraise to get him to the World Juniors. So he's re-starting his empty bottles and cans collection drive. In 2024 Henry cashed-in almost 40,000 cans and bottles so he could play in England - he's turning to his community once again for its help to get him to Canada. "I am prepared to work extremely hard over the next 11 weeks on court, but would also like to help mum and dad with the costs off the court," Henry said. "If you are happy to part with your cans and bottles, I'd love to take them off your hands and cash them in to help me get to Canada. "I've also started a fundraising page if anyone is interested in sponsorship." The page can be found at https://asf.org.au/campaigns/henry-kross/henrykrosssquashopportunities. Henry's goal is to raise $5000 before he jets off to Canada in August.