Squash: Father's records inspire Camden

Rotorua squash players Nadia Hubbard, 13, (front) and Camden Te Kani-McQueen, 15, are off to the Oceania Junior Championships at the Gold Coast in January. Photo / Ben Fraser.

Camden Te Kani-McQueen says beating her dad's squash records is what helps drive her in the sport.

Camden, 15, and fellow Rotorua Lakes High School student Nadia Hubbard, 13, have been selected for New Zealand age group teams to compete in the Gold Coast in January.

The two squash players earned the right to represent their country during a national tournament in Napier recently.

Camden said she would love to make a name for herself in the sport, like her father Danny McQueen. "I just want my name to be known," she said.

"I want to beat my dad's records. He was in the New Zealand men's squash team when he was 15."

She said her surname was well known in squash circles because of her parents, but it would be nice to make a name for herself on the court.

Camden will represent New Zealand at under-17 level while Nadia will represent the country at under-15 level during the 2014 Oceania Junior Championships in January.

It will be a new experience for Nadia who has not represented New Zealand at the competition before.

She said she was looking forward to the step up.

"It's just a big step from playing in the club to going out and playing for your country."

Nadia has only played the sport for three years but simply loves it, training and playing most days at Lakes High Squash Club.

"I think my older brother got me into it. He played [squash], I never used to watch him but Mum started taking me and got me into it."

Nadia currently has a B2 ranking and Camden a B1 ranking. They both hope to gain an A ranking in the future.

Ti Street Squash Academy, which has been running for two years in Rotorua, features about a dozen local squash players aged between 13 and 17.

Academy manager Cheryl Te Kani-McQueen, Camden's mum, said the academy was all about helping young players develop their squash talents.

"We are starting to get some really good results," she said.

"Three of the players are in the top three for their age groups [in the country]."

Nadia and Camden are among those players who attend the academy.

"The players like the culture. It is quite strict but it is helping them grow more of a professional attitude towards squash," Mrs Te Kani-McQueen said. The academy is also run by Danny McQueen and world-ranked squash player Amanda Landers-Murphy.

Nadia and Camden also represented the New Zealand Junior Secondary Schools team earlier this year defeating their Australian counterparts in Palmerston North.