Now based in Canada again, Naughton is energized as she continues push for Olympics

TORONTO — An oversized wooden squash racket hangs above a framed 2028 Los Angeles Olympics print on a pillar at Toronto’s Cambridge Club.

The items serve as a reminder of where squash has been and where it’s going.

The sport’s long-awaited addition to the Olympic program — something many in the squash world never thought would happen — has helped fuel Canada’s Hollie Naughton and others on the Pro Squash Association tour.

“You can win Pan Am Games medals, Commonwealth Games (medals), but as soon as you say, ‘I’m an Olympian,’ it just has a better ring to it,” Naughton said Monday. “So it would be fantastic to finish my career at the Olympics.”

The road to qualification continues this week at the Canadian Women’s Open and the men’s SmartCentres Canada Cup, which has partnered with the women’s event for the first time.

Naughton, the Canadian No. 1 and world No. 37, was scheduled to play fifth-seeded Nada Abbas of Egypt in a second-round match on Monday night in the Allen Lambert Galleria at Brookfield Place.

A four-time winner on the PSA Tour who’s been ranked as high as No. 16, the 32-year-old Naughton is building up with an eye on the 2027 Lima Pan Am Games.

A title in Peru, coupled with a top-50 ranking, is one of the qualification paths to secure a spot in the 16-player women’s draw in Los Angeles.

“There’s no reason why she can’t play her best squash towards the end,” said former top-10 men’s player Graham Ryding, who has helped coach Naughton in recent seasons. “You see that now with lots of players.

“There’s no reason why she can’t pull all the pieces together and finish (her career) strong.”

A native of Barnsley, England, Naughton spent her formative years in the sport in Mississauga and Oakville, Ont.

She has represented Canada internationally throughout her career and was based in Leeds, England, for several seasons before returning home last year. She now calls Toronto home.

“I feel like coming back here, it’s just been pulling it all together a bit more,” Naughton said before a morning training session.

“Being back in the home country, you’re going to feel a lot more support as well,” she added. “So I think that obviously adds to it a little bit too.”

Naughton is one of the harder ball-strikers on tour and is loaded with experience. The left-hander boasts a strong variety of shots and has great control on court.

Squash Canada chief executive officer Jamie Nicholls said Naughton has also been a great ambassador for the silver-level tournament, now in its fourth season.

“Her goal right now is to maintain her level, hold on, and obviously keep improving,” Nicholls said.

Naughton said she feels like she’s been playing some of her best squash in recent weeks, even if the results haven’t always been there.

She reached her career-high ranking in 2022, the same year she became the first Canadian woman to win a squash medal at the Commonwealth Games. Naughton was named flag-bearer at the closing ceremony in Birmingham, England.

“I think she’s very close to being her best self,” said Robin Clarke, another Toronto-based coach who has worked with Naughton. “I think that she’s probably at a higher level than she was when she won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games.

“I think she needs a few more match wins and maybe a tournament win to get her to have a little bit more belief.”

Play continues through Friday night at both tournaments.

Another pillar at the Cambridge Club — which is hosting some men’s matches this week — includes framed photos of some of the more glamorous stops on tour.

The PSA can set up an all-glass showcourt virtually anywhere, and the background visuals can be stunning.

The Toronto showcase venue, in the same building as the Hockey Hall of Fame, was featured among the tournament prints. Other shots included tournament play near the pyramids in Giza, Egypt, London’s Alexandra Palace and New York’s Grand Central Station.

There appeared to be room for one more from the Summer Games in July 2028. In a nod to the host city’s Hollywood connection, the sport will be played at the Comcast Squash Center at Universal Studios.

The temporary venue will be installed in the backlot set known as Courthouse Square, a location that’s been featured in films like “Back to the Future” and “Bruce Almighty.”

The IOC approved squash’s inclusion for Los Angeles in 2023, along with baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse (sixes) and T20 cricket.

“I think sometimes I’ve done my best when I’ve been the underdog,” Naughton said. “The Commonwealth Games, I was nowhere near what I ended up doing.

“So I think it’s a fantastic challenge.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 26, 2026.

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press