Michelle Martin

Template:Short description Template:About Template:Use Australian English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox squash player

Michelle Susan Martin Template:Post-nominals<ref name="oam">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> (born 29 April 1967) is an Australian former professional squash player who was one of the game's leading players in the 1990s. She was ranked number one in the world from 1993 to 1996 and again in 1998 and 1999, and won three World Open titles and six British Open titles.

Early lifeEdit

Martin was born on 29 April 1967 in Sydney, as the fourth of six children.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="smh1994">Template:Cite news</ref> Her older brothers Brett and Rodney also went on to be top professional players.<ref name="sahof">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Her parents, who had built the Engadine Squash Centre below their family home, introduced her to the game when she was three years old.<ref name="smh1994" /><ref name="sportsillustrated">Template:Cite magazine</ref> She would often play squash with her family after school, and at the age of eight, she came second in the state under-13s championship.<ref name="smh1994" /> She moved with her family to Brisbane in 1980, and attended Everton Park State High School.<ref name="smh1994" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

CareerEdit

She joined the Australian Institute of Sport's squash unit shortly after its establishment in 1985, and was part of the program for the rest of the 1980s; her coaches there included squash champions Geoff Hunt and Heather McKay.<ref name="smh1994" /><ref name="sahof" /> After working in a bank, she began her professional squash career in 1987, competing in her first of six World Team Squash Championships in that year; she went on to participate in all of them during her career except the 1989 championship.<ref name="sahof" /><ref name="manawatu">Template:Cite news</ref>

In early 1990, Martin was considering giving up the sport due to lack of progress (her world ranking had been steady at No. 6 for some years), until her uncle Lionel Robberds began coaching her, providing her with a rigorous training program of running, gym work and physical drills. Her confidence in her game and world ranking began to increase. In late 1990, she met Phil Harte, who was to be her manager from then until 1992. Harte suggested that, rather than wearing the traditional shirt and skirt during squash games, she should wear a two-piece lycra suit because it was "something sexy" that would "shake up the squash world" and gain publicity for her in the process. She agreed to do so, which caused much controversy.<ref name="smh1994" /> Fellow squash player Danielle Drady, who was married to Martin's brother Rodney, later left him for Harte, who became her manager and similarly had her dress in glad wrap for publicity.<ref name="smh1994"/><ref name="Gold Coast Sport">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Rodney became Martin's coach in 1998.<ref name="smh1998">Template:Cite news</ref>

She spent 44 months as the best women's squash player in the world from March 1993 to October 1996 before Cassie Jackman of England broke her dominance; she was also ranked number one in the world in 1998 and 1999.<ref name="smh1998" /><ref name="sportsillustrated" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She won three consecutive World Open championships from 1993 to 1995, and was a finalist in all the World Opens from 1992 to 1999 except 1996; she also won six consecutive British Opens from 1993 to 1998. She represented her country at the 1996 and 1999 Squash World Cups, and won gold medals in the sport at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games in the women's singles and mixed doubles. She also won the Australian Open in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, and 1999. At the end of 1999 she announced her retirement, saying she had achieved all her goals in the sport.<ref name="sahof" /> She worked as a manager and coach of the Australian women's junior and senior teams from 2003 to 2016.<ref name="hof2020">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

World OpenEdit

Finals: 7 (3 titles, 4 runners-up)Edit

Outcome	Year	Location	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	1992 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Vancouver, Canada	Template:Flagicon Susan Devoy	9–4, 9–6, 9–4
Winner	1993 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Johannesburg, South Africa	Template:Flagicon Liz Irving	9–2, 9–2, 9–1
Winner	1994 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Saint Peter Port, Guernsey	Template:Flagicon Cassie Jackman	9–1, 9–0, 9–6
Winner	1995 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Hong Kong	Template:Flagicon Sarah Fitz-Gerald	8–10, 9–2, 9–6, 9–3
Runner-up	1997 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Sydney, Australia	Template:Flagicon Sarah Fitz-Gerald	9–5, 5–9, 6–9, 9–2, 9–3
Runner-up	1998 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Stuttgart, Germany	Template:Flagicon Sarah Fitz-Gerald	10–8, 9–7, 2–9, 3–9, 10–9
Runner-up	1999 Women's World Open Squash Championship	Seattle, United States	Template:Flagicon Cassie Campion	9–6, 9–7, 9–7

World Team ChampionshipsEdit

Finals: 6 (4 title, 2 runner-up)Edit

Outcome	Year	Location	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	1987 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Auckland, New Zealand	Template:Flagicon England	2–1
Runner-up	1990 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Sydney, Australia	Template:Flagicon England	2–1
Winner	1992 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Vancouver, Canada	Template:Flagicon New Zealand	2–1
Winner	1994 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Saint Peter Port, Guernsey	Template:Flagicon England	3–0
Winner	1996 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Petaling Jaya, Malaysia	Template:Flagicon England	2–1
Winner	1998 Women's World Team Squash Championships	Stuttgart, Germany	Template:Flagicon England	3–0

Personal lifeEdit

Martin was married to Stephen Lacy, who was also her manager when she played professional squash, and the couple has two sons.<ref name="sportsillustrated"/><ref name="hof2020"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

RecognitionEdit

In 1994, Martin was named New South Wales Sportswoman of the Year.<ref name="smh1994"/> She was inducted into the Australian Squash Hall of Fame in 1995 and was upgraded to Legend status in 2011; she was also inducted into the New South Wales Sports Hall of Champions in 1998, the Women's Squash Hall of Fame in 2000, and the Queensland Sports Hall of Fame in 2009.<ref name="sahof" /><ref name="squashausoam">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She received an Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and a Medal of the Order of Australia in 2013.<ref name="oam" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She was inducted into the World Squash Hall of Fame, the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, and the Australian Institute of Sport "Best of the Best" in 2001.<ref name="sahof" /><ref name="squashausoam" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>