Bermuda’s best youngsters are in the British Virgin Islands to compete in the Caribbean Area Squash Association Junior Championships.

A squad of 16 players, five girls and 11 boys, will fly the island’s flag under the mentorship of Micah Franklin and Anaya Smith, with the action starting on Friday and set to last more than a week.

Carrying the island’s hopes for a medal in individual competition is Mason Smith, who has bagged gold at the event for the past three years. After dominating the under-11 with back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024, the youngster secured gold in his first attempt as an under-13 last year.

The 12-year-old is the No 1 seed this time around with his team-mate, Benjamin Sherratt, the second seed.

“I’m just hoping to go out there, play relatively good and just try to win again,” Smith told The Royal Gazette.

“My preparation has been really great. I’ve been eating a lot of healthy foods and training with my dad.

“I expect a high level of intensity and some really good squash when we go out there. I’m not sure what other countries are bringing, but the plan is to defend the title and bring home the gold again.”

Sherratt, who lost twice to Smith in the under-11 division, is determined to play for gold this year after settling for bronze in 2025.

“I’m feeling confident going into the tournament,” Sherratt said.

“I want to go there, make the final and try to win. It didn’t work out for me last year but I’ll try my best this time around. We’re not under much pressure, except for the semi-finals and final, where it’s going to be really tough.

“I’ve been playing every day, trying to eat better, stretch a lot and just trying to do as much as I can.”

Owen Rosorea has been a key member of the Bermuda squad and he clinched gold in the boys under-17 division in Cayman Islands a year ago

“I hope to finish top three in the individual and in the team tournament I think the boys can do well,” the 16-year-old said.

“There is just one guy in my age group who’s pretty good. His name is Jayden George, from St Vincent & the Grenadines, and I play him pretty much every year in the finals.

“I’m definitely a bit better than last year. I'm just hoping from my training that I’ll get an edge on him.”

Eli Carpol, Olivia Sherratt and Rose Paulos are attending their final junior tournament as they age out next year.

“It’s more about the journey than the results for me, especially this one,” Carpol said.

“I’m more focused on the team's success, especially in the team tournament, than how I do individually. I’m really excited to see what our team can do, especially the boys’ team and the boys’ doubles as well.”

A wrist injury is likely to confine Sherratt to a mentorship role for the younger girls in the team.

“I’m injured this year so I’m not going to be able to play,” she said.

“But I’m very excited to go down with Bermuda. I hope I’ll be able to help out the team in every way that I can, try to coach the juniors and help them out.

“Rose and I have both worked together coaching, so it’s really exciting to see the girls that we’ve been coaching for years begin to play competitively and start to travel with us as part of the team.

Paulos has mixed feelings after her final appearance at the top junior competition.

“I’m excited to go to the British Virgin Islands,” she said.

“I feel like we’re all pretty close and I’m excited to make more memories, but sad that it’s my last year. I’ll try to get the team as many points as we can so we can place pretty high.”

Remy Horsfall will be representing Bermuda for the first time in the under-11 age group.

“I’m pretty excited about going away on my first squash trip,” the ten-year-old said.

“I hope to make it to the top three. The preparation has been really tiring, but I believe that I’m ready.”

Franklin, the head of squash at the Bermuda Squash Racquets Association, is managing expectations.

“We’re going to try our best to be competitive,” he said.

“In boys, we have high chances of pulling off a top-three spot, and in the girls we’re just trying to stay competitive and do as best as we can.

“We have Mason and Ben, the one and two seeds in the boys under-13. Those are two of the best prodigies in Bermuda and they’re always great.

“We also have some exciting new up-and-comers in the boys under-11, Rian Maloney and Remy Horsfall.

“In the girls, it’s unfortunate Aleisha Siddiqi has just aged out of the under-11, so she’s playing under-13s her first year.”

Bermuda’s young stars will be playing in shirts provided by CG Insurance, the team’s new sponsor.

“We're really excited to have CG,” Franklin said.

“We have a lot of relationships with CG from the membership and CG has been fantastic to us in the past. We’re looking forward to representing them the best that we can.”