Coby Iwaasa

Iwaasa was a prodigious player as a junior, winning several Canadian Junior National Championships (Junior Nationals), including four Boy's U18 titles, which is a record. In Boys' Singles, he won U10 in 2007,[3] Boy's U12 in 2009,[4] and Boy's U14 in 2011.[5] In 2012[6][7] and 2013,[8][9] Iwaasa won both Boy's U16 and Boy's U18 at Junior Nationals. He also won Boy's U18 in his last two years of eligibility: 2014[10] and 2015.[11] In those last two years he also won Boy's U18 Doubles: with Matthew Swaine in 2014[12] and with Nicolas Bousquet in 2015.[13]

At the International Racquetball Federation World Junior Championships, Iwaasa finished 3rd in U14 in 2010 and 2011, 1st in U16 in 2012,[14] and 3rd in 2013 in U16 and 3rd in U18 in 2014.[15] He also played doubles at World Juniors finishing 3rd in U14 with Sami Harb in 2010, and 3rd in U14 with Matthew Swaine in 2011, 2nd in U16 with Harb in 2012, and 3rd in U16 with Nicolas Bousquet in 2013.[15]

Iwaasa played in the Racquetball Canada National Team Selection Event in February 2012 in Regina, where he lost in the Round of 16 to Francis Guillemette, 16–14, 15–8.[16]

Iwaasa played at the Canadian National Championships (Nationals) for the first time in 2012 in Brossard, Québec, where he lost in the Round of 16 to Eric Desrochers, 15–7, 16–14.[17] Iwaasa played Men's Doubles with Kurtis Cullen that year, and they lost in the quarterfinals to Mike Green and Kris Odegard, 15–2, 15–3.[18]

Iwaasa played in the 1st Racquetball Canada National Team Selection Event of the 2012–13 season in November 2012 in Kelowna, British Columbia, where he lost in the quarterfinals to Tim Landeryou, 7–15, 16–14, 11–4.[19] In the 2nd Racquetball Canada National Team Selection Event that season in February 2013 in Brossard, Québec, where he defeated Samuel Murray in the quarterfinals, 15–13, 16–14, but lost to Mike Green in the semi-finals, 15–13, 15–2. Iwaasa beat Pedro Castro in the 3rd place match, 15–8, 15–10.[20]

Iwaasa played Men's Doubles with veteran Mike Green at the 2013 Canadian Championships in Langley, British Columbia, and they won the title, defeating Lee Connell and Francis Guillemette in the final, 15–5, 15–6.[21] In the semi-finals, the defeated the brother team of Samuel Murray and Tommy Murray, 15–3, 15–6. That year in Men's Singles, Iwaasa lost to his partner Green, 15–3, 13–15, 11–2, in the semi-finals. But he won the 3rd place match against Nathaniel Husulak, 15–11, 15–7.[22]

In November 2013, Iwaasa finished 3rd at the 1st National Team Selection Event of the 2013–14 season in Winnipeg, where he reached the semi-finals by defeating Nathaniel Husulak in the quarterfinals, 15–6, 15–7, but lost to Mike Green, 15–6, 15–9. In the 3rd place match, he defeated Samuel Murray, 15–10, 15–8.[23] In the 2nd National Team Selection Event that season, he again played Green in the semis, and lost but in three games, 15–12, 8–15, 11–1, in Brossard, Québec in January 2014. In the 3rd place match, Tim Landeryou defeated Iwaasa, 15–7, 14–16, 11–6.[24]

The 2014 Canadian National Championships were also in Brossard, and Iwaasa played doubles with Kurtis Cullen. They were seeded 4th, but were upset in the quarterfinals by veterans Francis Guillemette and Corey Osborne, 15–12, 15–11.[25] Iwaasa was 3rd in Men's Singles for the second time, as he lost to eventual champion Vincent Gagnon, 15–10, 15–17, 11–6, in the semi-finals, but won the 3rd place match versus Samuel Murray, 13–15, 15–6, 11–8.[26]

That summer Iwaasa played for Canada for the first time by participating in the 2014 Pan American Sports Festival in Guadalajara, Mexico, where he defeated team-mate Samuel Murray, 15–9, 10–15, 11–3, in the Round of 16,[15] but lost to David Horn of the US in the quarterfinals, 8–15, 15–14, 11–6.[27]

Iwaasa competed on the World Racquetball Tour (WRT) in 2014, and won the Fall Brawl event in Lombard, Illinois.[28] He was seeded 7th, but he defeated 10th seed Sebastian Franco in the Round of 16, 15–11, 15–13, 2nd seed Polo Gutierrez in the quarterfinals, 15–6, 15–10, 3rd seed David Horn in the semi-finals, 10–15, 15–4, 11–5, and 1st seed Alejandro Cardona in the final, 9–15, 15–9, 11–8. He reached the quarterfinals in the other four WRT events that year.[15]

In November 2014, Iwaasa defeated Samuel Murray, in the quarterfinals, 15–9, 15–10, of the 1st National Team Selection Event of the 2014–15 season in Kitchener, Ontario. He then lost to Mike Green, 15–6, 15–6, in the semi-finals. Iwaasa finished 3rd by defeating Tim Landeryou, 15–11, 15–9.[29] He won the 2nd Selection Event that season in Brossard, Québec, where he beat Pedro Castro in the final, 15–9, 6–15, 11–8.[30] In the semi-finals, Iwaasa beat Landeryou, 12–15, 15–4, 11–7.

Iwaasa played seven tournaments in the 2014–15 International Racquetball Tour season, but only made it to the quarterfinals in the second last event of the season: the 2015 ProKennex Tournament of Champions in Portland, Oregon,[31] where he defeated Jose Rojas, 11–5, 11–6, 12–10, in the Round of 16, and then lost to Daniel de la Rosa in the quarterfinals, 6–11, 11–4, 11–5, 11–6. Previously that season, he'd played three tie-breakers in the Round of 16, losing two of them to De La Rosa and one to Jansen Allen.[15]

Iwaasa built on the success he had at the 2nd Selection Event to win both Men's Singles and Men's Doubles at the 2015 Nationals in Burnaby, British Columbia. In Men's Singles, Iwaasa defeated Samuel Murray in the final, 15–10, 12–15, 11–7, to win his 1st Canadian Championship in Men's Singles. To reach the final, Iwaasa beat Tim Landeryou in the quarterfinals, 15–8, 15–0, and Mike Green in the semi-finals, 15–11, 15–12.[32]

In Men's Doubles in Burnaby, Iwaasa played with Green, with whom he'd won the title two years before. They faced the defending champions Vincent Gagnon and Samuel Murray in the semi-finals, winning 15–9, 9–15, 11–4. In the final, they beat Nicolas Bousquet and Tommy Murray, 15–3, 15–11.[33]

Those wins got Iwaasa a spot on Team Canada for the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, where he played Men's singles. In the medal round, he defeated Fernando Rios of Ecuador and Jake Bredenbeck, 15-4 15–9, before losing to Mexican Álvaro Beltrán in the quarterfinals, 15–3, 15–7. But Iwaasa helped Canada earn a bronze medal in the Men's Team event. Canada played the US in the semi-finals, and the deciding match was Iwaasa versus Rocky Carson. After losing game one, Iwaasa had a chance to force a tie-breaker, but came up short, as Carson won in two straight games, 15–6, 15–14. [34]

Following the Pan American Games, Iwaasa, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, went on a two-year mission to Japan.[35]

Returning to competition, Iwaasa played the 1st National Team Selection event of the 2017–18 season in Vernon, British Columbia, where he lost in the semi-finals to Samuel Murray, 15–11, 15–8.[36] Iwaasa met Murray in the semi-finals of the 2nd National Team Selection Event that season in Kitchener, Ontario with the same result: a win for Murray, 15–2, 15–5.[37]

Iwaasa and Murray played Men's Doubles together at the 2018 Canadian Championships in Winnipeg, and they won the title by defeating Nicolas Bousquet and Tommy Murray in the final, 15–13, 10–15, 11–6. They beat the brother team of James Landeryou and Tim Landeryou in the semi-finals, 15–13, 15–10.[38] In Men's Singles, Iwaasa finished 2nd,[39] as he lost to Murray in the final, 15–7, 10–15, 11–2.[40] Iwaasa got to the final by defeating Tim Landeryou in the semi-finals, 15–6, 15–13.

Iwaasa represented Canada at the Racquetball World Championships for the first time in 2018 in San José, Costa Rica, where he played Men's Singles. In the medal round, he won his first match against Daeyong Kwon of South Korea, 15–11, 15–2, but lost to Colombian Mario Mercado in a tie-breaker, 15–13, 10–15, 11–9, in the Round of 16.

Iwaasa was a finalist at the World Racquetball Tour 2018 Canadian Open[41] in Calgary, where he lost to Andree Parrilla in the final, 15–11, 15–13. He reached the final by defeating Gerardo Franco in the semi-finals, 15–7, 15–11.[15]

In the 2018–19 season, Iwaasa was runner up to Samuel Murray at both the 1st National Team Selection Event in Valleyfield, Québec, where he was beaten in three games, 9–15, 15–6, 11–6,[42] and the 2nd National Team Selection Event in Grande Prairie, Alberta, losing 15–10, 15–10.[43]

In the second Racquetball Canada National Team Selection event of 2018–19 in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Iwaasa was 2nd to Murray, who won their final, 15–10, 15–10, in the final.[44] He beat Trevor Webb in the semi-finals, 15–4, 14–15, 11–9.

Iwaasa was a member of Team Canada for the 2019 Pan American Racquetball Championships in Barranquilla, Colombia, where he reached an international final for the first time. Iwaasa and Samuel Murray were finalists in Men's Doubles. They beat Costa Ricans Andres Acuña and Felipe Camacho in the semi-finals, 8–15, 15–1, 11–3, but lost to Bolivians Roland Keller and Conrrado Moscoso, 2–15, 15–9, 11–2, in the final. Iwaasa also played Men's Singles in Barranquilla, where he lost in the Round of 16 to eventual Pan Am Champion Carlos Keller of Bolivia, 15–10, 15–9.

Iwaasa was runner up in Men's Singles at the 2019 Canadian Championships, as he lost in the final to Samuel Murray, 15–3, 15–6, in Langley, British Columbia.[45] He beat Tim Landeryou in the semi-finals, 15–13, 15–2.[46] Iwaasa played doubles with Trevor Webb for the first time, and they finished 3rd. They lost in the semi-finals to Murray and his brother Tommy, 11–15, 15–10, 11–4.[47] But they won the 3rd place match against Nicolas Bousquet and Pedro Castro, 15–11, 15–9.[48]

For the 2nd time in his career, Iwaasa played in the Pan American Games. He competed in the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, where he played in Men's Singles, Men's Doubles, and the Men's Team event. Iwaasa was a quarterfinalist in all three. In Men's singles, he narrowly lost to eventual silver medalist Álvaro Beltrán of Mexico, 15–14, 15–13.[49] He played Men's doubles with Samuel Murray, and as in singles, Iwaasa and Murray were quarterfinalists, losing to Mexicans Rodrigo Montoya and Javier Mar, 15–5, 15–6. Murray and Iwaasa lost in the Men's Team quarterfinals to Colombia, who went on to take silver.

In the 2019–20 season, Iwaasa finished 2nd at both National Team Selection Events. The first was held in Sherwood Park, Alberta, where he was runner up to Samuel Murray, losing in the final, 15–5, 15–8.[50] He also lost to Murray in the final of the second event in Winnipeg, although that match went to a tie-breaker with Murray coming out on top, 8–15, 15–7, 11–1.[51]

Iwaasa was on Team Canada for the 2021 IRF World Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala, where he played Men's Doubles with Samuel Murray.[52] They lost to Bolivians Roland Keller and Conrrado Moscoso, 9–15, 15–12, 11–4, in the quarterfinals, although they had beaten Bolivia in the group stage of matches.

Iwaasa won Men's Doubles with Samuel Murray at the 2022 Pan American Racquetball Championships in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. They defeated the Ecuador team of Juan Francisco Cueva and Jose Daniel Ugalde in the final, 10–15, 15–13, 15–5, 11–15, 11–5.[53] He also played Mixed Doubles in Bolivia with Juliette Parent, and they lost in the quarterfinals to eventual gold medalists Mexicans Rodrigo Montoya and Samantha Salas, 15–6, 15–9, 15–12.[54]

He was runner up in both Men's Singles and Men's Doubles at the 2022 Canadian Championships in Brossard, Québec in May, 2022.[55] Iwaasa lost to Samuel Murray in the Men's Singles final, 15–9, 15–8, 15–8, after beating Trevor Webb in the semi-finals, 15–13, 15–7, 15–12. Iwaasa played doubles with Kurtis Cullen, and they lost to Murray and his brother Tommy in the final, 12–15, 15–14, 15–6, 15–9.[56]

Iwaasa was part of two medals for Canada at the 2022 IRF World Championships in San Luis Potosí, Mexico. He and Samuel Murray were bronze medalists in Men's Doubles, and he was part of the Men's Team that were runners up to Mexico. Iwaasa helped Canada finish 4th overall as a team.[57]

Iwaasa played Men's Doubles (with Samuel Murray) and Mixed Doubles with Danielle Ramsay at the 2023 Pan American Racquetball Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala. Murray was injured in the last doubles match of the group stage, so Trevor Webb played with Iwaasa in the rest of the tournament.[58] Murray's injury also meant that Iwaasa played singles in the medal round. In doubles, he and Webb lost to Costa Ricans Andrés Acuña and Gabriel Garcia in the quarterfinals, 11-3, 11-2, 14-12, and they played each other in the Round of 16 in singles, with Webb winning 11-5, 11-9, 12-10. In Mixed Doubles, Iwaasa and Ramsay lost to Ecuador's Maria Paz Muñoz and Jose Francisco Cueva, 11-7, 7-11, 9-11, 11-5, 11-9.

At the 2023 Racquetball Canada National Championships in Winnipeg, Manitoba,[1] Iwaasa and Kurtis Cullen defeated Samuel Murray and Tommy Murray in the Men's Doubles final, 12–10, 11–9, 11–4.[59] The win was Iwaasa's fourth Canadian Men's Doubles title. In singles, he lost to Samuel Murray in the final, 11–4, 12–10, 11–3.

Iwaasa has won five Canadian Championships: one in Men's Singles in 2015, and three in Men's Doubles – in 2013 and 2015 with Mike Green, one in 2018 with Samuel Murray, and one in 2023 with Kurtis Cullen. He's played for Team Canada 10 times, winning gold in Men's Doubles at the 2022 Pan American Racquetball Championships with Murray, as well as earning a bronze medal at the 2015 Pan American Games, and a silver medal at the 2019 Pan American Racquetball Championships, and two medals at the 2022 World Championships: bronze in Men's Doubles and silver in the Men's Team event.

Iwaasa is from Lethbridge, Alberta. His cousin Alexis also plays racquetball, and was a Canadian Junior Champion.[60] He's currently attending Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto.

• List of racquetball players

• Coby Iwaasa page at Canadian Olympic Committee site