NZ Squash legend Dame Susan Devoy joins PSA Hall of Fame

NZ squash legend Dame Susan Devoy and Jahangir Khan from Pakistan have become the inaugural inductees to the Professional Squash Association Hall of Fame. Photo / Squash NZ

New Zealand and world squash legend Dame Susan Devoy has become one of the first members of the inaugural Professional Squash Association’s Hall of Fame.

The PSA Hall of Fame was launched to recognise the achievements of the game’s most influential characters, past and present.

Devoy was inducted alongside Pakistan’s Jahangir Khan and the pair were formally honoured at the British Open Squash Awards in Birmingham, UK, over the weekend, a Squash New Zealand Poipātū Aotearoa statement announced.

Devoy, who was born in Rotorua and lives in Tauranga, turned professional in 1981 at age 17.

She won the coveted British Open eight times, and World Open Championship titles four times in 1985, 1987, 1990 and 1992. She was named New Zealand Sports Person and Sports Women of the Year in 1985.

The statement said Khan is regarded by many as the greatest squash player of all time. He is a six-time World Champion, 10-time British Open champion and winner of an unprecedented 555 successive matches.

Devoy retired as a professional player in 1992.

She was Race Relations Commissioner from 2013 to 2018 and is the current vice president of the World Squash Federation.

In 1986, Devoy was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to squash. She was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1993 then Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 1998, both for services to squash and the community.

In the statement, Devoy said being inducted into the PSA Hall of Fame was “a real privilege”.

Dame Susan Devoy in 2013. Photo / NZME

“These awards keep the spirit of the sport alive and I’m delighted to be here with Jahangir, the greatest of all time. This man was always the ultimate gentleman and I’m so privileged to be standing beside him.”

PSA chief executive Alex Gough said: “Susan and Jahangir are two of the finest players ever to play the sport and we’re thrilled to recognise their achievements by making them the first players to be inducted into the PSA Hall of Fame.

“What Susan and Jahangir have achieved in the sport is incredible and we are pleased to have had the opportunity to celebrate their legacy.”

Squash New Zealand chief executive Martin Dowson.

Squash New Zealand chief executive Martin Dowson congratulated Devoy.

“Her influence on the game of squash has been huge and it’s great to see her recognised with such a fantastic honour. She has inspired countless athletes and her legacy continues to be felt in the sport in New Zealand and globally,” he told the Bay of Plenty Times.

This year, PSA celebrates 50 years since the International Squash Players Association – the precursor to the PSA – was founded in February 1974.

ISPA governed the men’s professional game before a historic merger between the PSA and the Women’s Squash Association in 2015.

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.