West Tops Nation’s Best Competitors

It might be hard to believe, but there is something better than the butternut squash soup served in the dining halls on Tuesdays.

That’s the squash being served up by Harvard men’s squash star Colin West. With only one match remaining in the regular season—against rival Yale this Wednesday—the junior stands almost undefeated with an impressive 8-1 individual record.

Last week, West defeated Trinity’s Gustav Detter in an exciting four-game battle. West—ranked fourth at the time—topped the nation’s second best player 3-1 (10-8, 9-4, 2-9, 9-2). Since that win, West has suffered his only loss of the season—3-0 (9-1, 9-2, 9-1) to Princeton’s Mauricio Sanchez.

The moment West stepped onto the court to face Detter, Harvard had already lost its first eight matches of the day to the Bantams, who hold the longest winning streak of any American college team in intercollegiate sports with 183 wins in a row.

What factors contributed to West’s victory? Talent? Plenty. Determination? Ditto. But, most importantly, selflessness and humility—two qualities that are inversely related to the big egos (and high salaries) often found in athletics today.

West is not new to success on the court. He was voted Ivy League Rookie of the Year as a freshman in 2007 and was an All-American in his sophomore season. This year, West has improved upon last year’s 8-3 record in the top spot.

“It’s been a big season for me,” West admitted. “Last year, there was still a big gap between me and the top guys. This year, its finally closing, and I feel like I’m right up there with them.”

Interpret “big gap” however you like, but West was ranked #6 in the nation last year.

Even before arriving at Harvard, West was no stranger to intense competition. Like any good Canadian, the Toronto native was skating by age four. By age eight, West was juggling hockey practices and junior circuit squash tournaments. While he participated in both sports until he was 16, squash was always the more exciting of the two.

“For some reason, in squash, the wins were bigger, the losses were worse, West said. “In hockey, I wasn’t quite as devastated by the losses. I think I’m more wired for an individual sport. I just felt so much more passion for it.”

And his passion he followed. By age 13, West was competing in the U.S Junior Open. By 15, he was swinging his racquet at the World Juniors in New Zealand. Fast forward to the present, and the 20-year-old is just shy of the top collegiate ranking in the U.S. His win against Detter is one of the best of his life.

“For me especially, getting a chance to play the second best player in the country, I knew I wouldn’t get that many shots. You have to perform,” West said of the victory.

Though it was their first matchup, it wasn’t just about West and Detter that day. Nor was it solely a matter of winning and losing. While West probably has a trophy case that looks like King Midas’s G.I. Joe collection, he couldn’t stop talking about his team.

“In college squash, you get few opportunities to make something big happen,” West said. “We’d been preparing for a long time for this match. It’s not just an individual thing.”

Though the final outcome was already decided by the time he took the court, West said he was motivated to earn a win for his teammates, whom he repeatedly credits for his success.

“College is the best of both worlds. I get to have the individual aspect, where it’s on me, but I still get to play for a team. There’s extra motivation: training with a team of guys, who are teammates, but also some of your best friends on campus.”

Head Coach Santinder Bajwa spoke volumes of the maturity and cohesion of his team. His players create a supportive, positive atmosphere in which they all can blossom as people as well as athletes, he said.

“Sometimes, great players bring a team together. Sometimes, twwwhe team makes a great player,” Bajwa said.

It is valuable, he believes, for any athlete to experience an individual sport that is also a team sport. West in particular will benefit from his college experience.

“Colin is one of those kids that you get every three or four years,” says Bajwa. “He enjoys not just performing for himself, but performing for a collective group of people that he cares for.”

Bajwa also looks forward to West’s professional aspirations: “In the long run, he wants to play professionally for a year or two and see how he does. The team is going to make him whole.”

With the CSA National Team Championships coming up next week and the CSA Individual Championships coming up in two, men’s squash as well as West have a lot to look forward to.