WJC Profile: Rowan Niven’s hard work pays off with Australia call
Representing Scotland in the Junior World Championships feels like the culmination of years of hard work for young squash star Rowan Niven.
The eighteen-year-old honed her craft at Bridge of Allan Squash Club, and has travelled across Scotland and Europe as part of her playing journey.
As she approaches the end of her junior playing days, Rowan is keen to end this year on a high and she views the team event in Australia as the perfect opportunity to do so.
Rowan said: “I started playing at U11 and it has all built up from there.
“A lot of my childhood has revolved around squash, and it has allowed me to make so many good friends and travel across Europe.
“It will be quite sad to reach the end of the junior pathway, but it’s also really exciting to be going to Australia, and to think about the possibilities and opportunities that will be available to me in the future as a senior player.”
Rowan feels that through a combination of strong play and strong friendships, Scotland could do well in the women’s team competition.
She said: “As a team, we’re all really close to each other as we all play in the same circuit in Scotland.
“We all know each other so well and we have a great team dynamic, so I think we have a chance to do really well.
“We have a really strong team with strong players from the European circuit, so hopefully we can play to our potential and have a great tournament.”
While playing against Scottish and European opposition has helped Rowan to develop, she feels that now is the time to face new opponents and new challenges, and Melbourne will provide the perfect opportunity to do this.
Rowan said: “I’ve never played players from countries like India, Malaysia and Australia.
“This tournament will give us an idea of just how good the very best players in the world are, and hopefully I will learn about the level of performance required to compete at the very top.”
Having just finished at Dunblane High School, Rowan is now looking forward to studying Neuroscience at the University of Glasgow.
She also retains high hopes for her squash playing future, with plans to continue playing and improving alongside her studies.
Rowan said: “I would love to represent Scotland at the highest level as a senior, and play at events all over the world.
“I think the Commonwealth Games is a really big goal for lots of squash players, and if I really stick with it and keep my head down, it could be a possibility for me.”
The World Junior Championships get underway on Monday 18th July and will run until Monday 29th July. Sign up for our World Junior Championships 2023 mailing list for updates from Australia by clicking here. Follow the new Scottish Squash TikTok page for behind the scenes footage from the Scotland camp!
