About Squash For Smiles
SFS started as a project in 2020 to introduce squash to Mingzhi, a small junior high school in urban Taiwan. Initiated by Pearl Shaw, a 7x national champion squash player in Taiwan, the project started as a way to bring the benefits of squash to a less privileged school. What began as a personal passion quickly transformed into a non-profit organization founded by Pearl Shaw and national team member Daphne Chang. SFS collaborates with various schools, clubs, and sports facilities to popularize squash across Taiwan. Because squash can be quite an expensive sport, SFS provides free lessons and equipment for those who cannot afford to play otherwise, and our coaches are all national team members. SFS has now made an impact on over 450 people in Taiwan and is actively pursuing more schools and starting fundraising events to further expand its reach. Our goal remains to spread the sport we love, and bring joy and smiles to people’s faces :).
Squash & Origins
Squash was the combination of many racquet sports around Europe and in England. Before squash, many kids and adults in Europe played in the streets, along roofs or shop windows, or in cloistered courtyards. In the prisons of London in the 1700s, the prisoners used 1-2 walls and a tiny ball made out of wound cloth to play a game called racquets. In the 1800s, there was another sport called fives common at English public schools. The combination of these two started in Harrow school and became known as squash.
Now, Egypt dominates the squash world, and squash is a very popular sport among countries such as England, US, Egypt, South Africa, Malaysia, and Pakistan. We hope that more people are inspired to play squash in Taiwan!
壁球是許多歐洲和英格蘭球拍運動的結合體。在壁球出現之前，許多歐洲的孩子和成年人在街上、屋頂上或商店櫥窗旁，甚至在僻靜的庭院裡玩耍。在18世紀的倫敦監獄裡，囚犯們利用1-2堵牆和一個由繃布製成的小球玩了一個叫做球拍的遊戲。在19世紀，英格蘭的公立學校普遍流行一種名為「fives」的運動。這兩者的結合始於哈羅學校，並被稱為壁球！我們希望更多的人受到在台灣玩壁球的啟發！
如今，埃及在壁球世界占主導地位，壁球在英格蘭、美國、埃及、南非、馬來西亞和巴基斯坦等國家非常受歡迎。
Why Squash?
Why should you try out squash? Squash is a great way to get your exercise in. It helps keep your blood healthy and supports heart health and function. As the game relies on hitting a ball against a wall, it is a sport you can play by yourself, making it very convenient. Also, most importantly, it brings more smiles!
為什麼你應該嘗試壁球呢？壁球是鍛煉身體的好方法。它有助於保持血液健康，支持心臟健康和功能。由於這項運動依賴將球擊打到牆上，你可以獨自一人玩，非常方便。而且，最重要的是，它能帶來更多的笑容！
Pearl Shaw, World Junior Championships 2023.