Erin Classen is a squash player and the recipient of a Tier 3 Scholarship within the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship and Mentoring Program.
Erin was born in South Africa in 2004 and moved to Western Australia with her family at 4 years of age. She played many sports as a child, including netball, swimming, tennis and athletics, before finding squash as a 9-year-old.
Erin plays for Squashworld Mirrabooka and has achieved great success as a junior. She represented WA as a junior from 2014 – 2019, and in the same period won 10 WA junior state titles. In 2019, she became the youngest player to win the WA Open at age 14.
After winning the U/13 and U/15 national titles, Erin progressed to the next level and represented Australia in Trans-Tasman Tests vs New Zealand in 2016, and again in 2020. She also took fifth place in the Singapore Junior Open in 2019 while wearing the green and gold.
The highlight of Erin’s young career was representing her country at the World Junior Squash Championships in Malaysia in 2019, and this earned her a nomination for the RAC WA Junior Sports Star Award, as well as the title of WA Squash Junior Player of the Year.
Erin’s twin brother Dylan is also an accomplished squash player, and together they form an impressive mixed doubles team.
Erin is currently completing year 10, and alongside her desire to win medals at major squash championships, she is interested in becoming a sports manager, physical therapist or media sports program designer.
Erin is currently ranked in the U19 Top 30 juniors in the world.
“Being successful in receiving the SAHOF Scholarship means a great deal to me. To be part of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame team by being a 2021 Scholarship and Mentoring Program recipient, makes me feel both extremely excited and proud. In the coming year, I am determined to challenge myself on and off the squash court, and to represent my Scholarship proudly. The Scholarship will allow me to travel to national and international tournaments to further enhance my play and rankings, with the 2021 World Junior Championships in Egypt being of paramount importance.” – Erin Classen on being selected as a 2021 Tier 2 Scholarship Holder.
Awards, Honours & Achievements
- 2014 – 2019: WA Junior State Team – Representative
- 2014 – 2019: WA Junior State Championships – Winner of 10 Titles
- 2016: Trans-Tasman, Auckland NZ, U13
- 2017: Australian Junior Open – Winner, U13
- 2019: WA Squash Junior of the year
- 2019: World Junior Squash Championships, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Australian Team Representative, U19
- 2019: World Junior Championships, Malaysia – 40th-48th (14 years old)
- 2019: WA Open Ladies Champion
- 2019: RAC Junior Sport Star Nominee
- 2019: Singapore Junior Open – 5th, U17
- 2019: Kalgoorlie Golden Open – Ladies Division 1 Runner-up
- 2019: WA Squash Junior Player of the Year
- 2020: U17 Trans-Tasman, Gold Coast – COVID19 cancelled
- 2021: Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship Holder – Tier 3
