Rocky Carson wins the 2007 Motorola IRT World Championship presented by Verizon Wireless

Colorado Springs Colorado - The Lynmar Health and Racquet Club was the host site for the IRT’s third Grand Slam event the Motorola IRT World Racquetball Championship presented by Verizon Wireless. Lynmar is known as the official training center for team USA and has a long tradition as the premier racquetball club in Colorado. The event showcased the top fifty professional players in the world who competed for a total purse of $30,000 and mirrored the Choice Hotels US OPEN and Motorola Pro Nationals in the set up and presentation of the pro game. A full slate of amateur players were treated to some great racquetball by the IRT all week.

The event featured the sports biggest upsets as #1 Jack Huczek lost in the opening round to Mexico’s Javier Moreno and #2 Jason Mannino was taken out by Mexico’s Polo Gutierrez. This would mark the first time in the sports history that the top two ranked players would bow out in the first round. As Mexico’s premier player, #4 Alvaro Beltran made his way through the draw so did his counterparts Polo and Javier all the way to the semi’s finals. The lone U.S. player was #3 Rocky Carson in the semifinal. #5 Shane Vanderson pushed Beltran to the limit in the quarterfinal matchup but could not close out the match. #6 Mitch Williams also had an impressive showing but would lose a tough one to Carson in the eights. Polo would continue his hot streak by beating #7 Chris Crowther in the quarters and Javier would defeat #9 Ben Croft in his quarterfinal match. The semi’s is as far as the upset minded stars from Mexico would go as Rocky took out Polo and Alvaro would handle his gold medal Pan American doubles partner Moreno in the other semi. This would set the stage for Rocky and Alvaro to see who would take the sports newest Grand Slam title. Neither Both players would play their hearts out for the coveted grand slam title that neither one has claimed. The stands were full to capacity for this title bout and the crowd loved every minute of it. It would be Carson in the end that would prevail and win his first title on the grand slam stadium court. It was a very fitting win for Carson who had just recently signed a sponsorship deal with Motorola and Verizon Wireless. This would mark the first time in modern day IRT history that a major corporation outside the industry would become a major sponsor for an IRT professional.

Not enough can be said for the event staff that helped set up and organize this event. Eddie and Mary Meredith deserve all the credit in pulling off this grand slam event. The extra help behind the scenes included the CRA, Julie Vincent, Cindy Tilbury, Joe Williams and the USAR staff. Without the help of these and all the other volunteers the event would not be as successful as it was. Doug Ganim and Jim Hiser once again stepped up and helped out with this event to make it a premier event for the sport and the IRT. Motorola and Verizon Wireless, with the help of their marketing team from Genesco Sports added a new flavor to the sport by bringing in a climbing wall and racing simulator for the racquetball fans to enjoy. A fully furnished VCAST lounge for the VIP’s and sponsors was another highlight of the event and was a place to sit and relax between matches on a comfortable couch and a sixty inch screen HD television. This would be the first event of this kind west of the Mississippi and will continue to grow for years to come.

Once again the IRT would like to thank Dan Aderhold of Motorola for having the vision and trust that the sport of racquetball will help create a great brand awareness for Motorola and Verizon Wireless. If you do not have a Motorola phone or Verizon Wireless service please convert now and support the first major corporations that have taken notice of our sport and the IRT and are helping bring the sport to a new level of visibility. When you do convert please let the IRT know so the information can be passed on to these great companies