Vanessa Atkinson

Vanessa Louise Atkinson (born 10 March 1976 in Newcastle, England) is a former professional squash player from the Netherlands, who won the World Open in 2004 and reached the World No. 1 ranking in December 2005.

Vanessa Atkinson

Atkinson during 2009 Women's World Open
Full name	Vanessa Louise Atkinson
Country	Netherlands
Residence	Leeds, England
Born	(1976-03-10) 10 March 1976 Newcastle, England
Turned Pro	1995
Retired	2011
Plays	Right Handed
Coached by	Liz Irving
Racquet used	Karakal
Women's singles
Highest ranking	No. 1 (December, 2005)
Title(s)	25
Tour final(s)	42
World Open	W (2004)
Medal record Women's squash Representing  Netherlands World Championships 2004 Kuala Lumpur Singles 2003 Hong Kong Singles 2005 Hong Kong Singles
Last updated: 3 December 2019.

Atkinson was born in England, but her family moved to the Netherlands when she was still a child. She began playing squash as a youngster in Dordrecht. She now resides in Harrogate, Yorkshire, with her partner James Willstrop, himself a professional squash player.[1]

Atkinson's biggest win came in 2004 when she won the World Open title in Kuala Lumpur by defeating fellow compatriote Natalie Grinham (at that time still representing Australia) with a score of 9–1, 9–1, 9–5 in the final.[2] Atkinson also has won major tournaments in Qatar, New York, Monte Carlo, Malaysia and Ireland.

Atkinson retired from professional play in May 2011.