US Squash welcomes Truist as the presenting sponsor of the 2021 U.S. Open Squash Championships. The U.S. Open brings the world’s best players to Philadelphia to compete for the most prestigious squash championship in the United States. The 2021 event is being held at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center for the first time, October 1-6.
“We are proud to partner with Truist as the presenting sponsor of the U.S. Open,” said Kevin Klipstein, US Squash President & CEO. “Their support ensures the U.S. Open’s status as a world-leading squash championship, and provides momentum for this exciting season as we showcase the event at the Specter Center for the first time. Truist and US Squash share a focus on serving the local community through building accessible, meaningful opportunities, and this partnership will help us accelerate this work at the Specter Center and nationwide.”
The Specter Center, now the world’s largest community squash center, held its official Grand Opening celebration on Saturday, October 2 alongside the U.S. Open. The Specter Center features 20 courts—including two all-glass exhibition courts—US Squash’s national headquarters and the U.S. Squash Hall of Fame. The Specter Center is located in one of 22 federally-designated Promise Zones, and welcomes players and seeks to introduce new players into the sport, creating and nurturing a broad and inclusive community. During its soft-opening phase this summer the Specter Center offered no-cost introductory clinics, and the facility will see activity accelerate in the fall including the creation of 10 new Philadelphia public school teams, forming the first public school league in the country, and the SquashSmarts program operating its intensive out-of-school time academic and athletic mentoring program at the Specter Center’s Lenfest Learning & Innovation Center.
“Truist is proud to partner with organizations and individuals who share our purpose to ‘Inspire and Build Better Lives and Communities’,” said Travis Rhodes, BB&T now Truist Regional President, Delaware Valley/Lehigh Valley Region. “US Squash is already making a difference in Philadelphia, we are pleased to join them in the incredible work they are doing.”
Founded in 1954, the U.S. Open is one of the world’s premier professional squash championships, featuring the top players competing for its coveted title. The six-day Professional Squash Association (PSA) World Tour Platinum event. This year’s hosting marks the 10th year the event has been presented in Philadelphia in partnership with Drexel University. The $250,000 purse continues the U.S. Open’s leadership role in prize money parity after it became the first major squash event in the world to offer equal prize money for women and men nearly a decade ago. Squash is the only sport that does so for all major world-level professional championships with the standard of competition also being equal.
About Truist:
Truist Financial Corporation is a purpose-driven financial services company committed to inspire and build better lives and communities. With 275 years of combined BB&T and SunTrust history, Truist has leading market share in many high-growth markets in the country. The company offers a wide range of services including retail, small business and commercial banking; asset management; capital markets; commercial real estate; corporate and institutional banking; insurance; mortgage; payments; specialized lending; and wealth management. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Truist is the sixth-largest commercial bank in the U.S. with total assets of $499 billion as of September 30, 2020. Truist Bank, Member FDIC. Learn more at Truist.com.
About US Squash:
US Squash is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization which serves as the only national governing body and membership organization for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1904 and headquartered in Philadelphia, it is a member of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, the Pan American Squash Federation and the World Squash Federation. Its mission is to lead squash’s growth and development by increasing access and awareness, supporting meaningful lifelong engagement in the sport, and encouraging sportsmanship while achieving competitive excellence at the highest levels. Learn more at www.ussquash.org.
Media Contacts:
Media@Truist.com
US Squash:
Chris McClintick
646-218-0458
media@usopensquash.com
