// Workers AI · dad joke modeWho's Martin Heath? He's a heath-ly guy.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | British (Scottish) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 31 January 1973 (age 53) Stirling, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No.4 (October 1999) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Martin Heath (born 31 January 1973) is a former professional squash player from Oban, Scotland, who competed at two Commonwealth Games. His career-high ranking was World No.4, which he reached in 1999.
Biography
[edit]Aged 19, Heath helped the Scottish men's team win the gold medal at the 1992 European Squash Team Championships in Aix-en-Provence, France.[1]
Heath turned professional in 1994 after graduating from the University of Glasgow. He spent eleven years on the professional tour, including six consecutive years ranked in the world's top 100. In 1996, Heath won the Singapore Open and repeated again in 1997, both times without losing a game.[2] However, it was not until 1998 that Heath made his debut in the top 10 at No. 7 by reaching the final of the Al Ahram International, beating World No. 1 Peter Nicol in the semi-finals. At the time, the Al Ahram event was the largest purse to date at $175,000.[3]
Heath represented the 1998 Scottish team[4] at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,[5] where he competed in the squash events.[6] His brother David Heath[7] also competed at the Games.[8]
In 1999, Heath reached the semi-finals of the World Open, losing to eventual champion Peter Nicol 3 to 1. In 2000, he finished runner-up at the Tournament of Champions in New York City (beating Peter Nicol in the semi-finals, before losing to Jonathon Power in the final). His last competitive year was 2002 in which he reached the semi-finals of the Pakistan Open and quarter finals at the British Open and World Open. He also went to a second Commonwealth Games after being selected by the 2002 Scottish team[9] at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England, where he competed in the squash events[10] and reached the quarter-fnals of the doubles.[11]
Heath won the Scottish national squash title six times in 1995, 1997,[12] 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004.[13]
Since retiring as a player in 2004, Heath has worked as a coach, performance director and sports journalist, writing a column for Squash Magazine and commentating on many PSA tour events as color and lead commentator, including the Commonwealth Games in 2014, BBC, TSN, ESPN & CBC. Heath was the Head Squash Coach for the University of Rochester men's varsity squash team, the "Yellowjackets". Heath led the team from a pre-season intercollegiate (CSA) ranking of No. 28 in 2005 to No. 1 in 2016. The Yellowjackets reached the semi-finals of the CSA National Championships in 2009, 2010 and 2011 and the final in 2016, losing narrowly to Yale after defeating Trinity College in the semi-finals.[citation needed]
As a consultant Heath took on Head Coach and Performance Director roles with the US National Teams, Scottish Teams, Canadian Teams and briefly with the Chinese National Teams, helping lead his teams to many international titles and medals, most notably the Men's World Doubles Championships in 2017.[citation needed]
Heath currently plays a role as Head Squash Professional at the renowned Cambridge Club in Toronto, Canada, where he resides with his son, Kamren.[citation needed]
References
[edit]- ↑ "When Scotland were Squash Kings of Europe". Scottish Squash. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- ↑ "Heath gets it straight". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 25 August 1997. p. 24. Retrieved 16 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Heath shocker". Bristol Evening Post. 2 October 1998. p. 72. Retrieved 16 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Drug shame lifter in team picked to restore the nation's sporting pride Honour and discredit in squad for the Games". The Herald. 3 July 1998. Retrieved 16 April 2026.
- ↑ "Athletes". Team Scotland. Retrieved 16 April 2026.
- ↑ "Scotland Kuala Lumpur 1998". Commonwealth Games Federation. Archived from the original on 17 May 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2026.
- ↑ "Nicol boosts Scots bid". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 11 March 1998. p. 29. Retrieved 16 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Tacey tips Scots for Games glory". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 3 July 1998. p. 38. Retrieved 16 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Athletes". Team Scotland. Retrieved 24 April 2026.
- ↑ "Scotland Manchester 2002". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
- ↑ "Statistics Commonwealth Games". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
- ↑ "Heath the younger wins a family final". The Scotsman. 22 December 1997. p. 29. Retrieved 16 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "National Champions". Scottish Squash. Retrieved 16 April 2026.
- Coach profile at University of Rochester at the Wayback Machine (archived 3 January 2011)
- Martin Heath – PSA World Tour profile at the Wayback Machine (archived 18 December 2013)
- Martin Heath at Squash Info
- Page at squashpics.com at the Wayback Machine (archived 20 August 2008)
- Article at squashtalk.com (Feb 2001)