Recent IRT news

A few items of news from the International Racquetball Tour (IRT) ahead of the first tournament of the season: the Motorola World Championships in Denver. Some of the news is good, but some is bad. Let's start with the bad.

Beltran Injured

Alvaro Beltran won't be playing in Denver, as he's torn his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and meniscus, according to a report on the IRT website. No word on which knee Beltran injured. The injury occurred during training, and may require surgery.

Thus, Beltran will be out for the first part of the season. It's unknown how long, but he likely won't play until the new year.

This is bad news for the tour, as Beltran is one of the top players and was the only player to beat Kane Waselenchuk last season.

Negrete commits for 5 years

Dave Negrete has agreed to be IRT Commissioner for the next 5 years. He's been the Commissioner since 2001. In that time Negrete has increased the tour's sponsorship, and including getting the funding for the Lucite portable court, which has been used to bring racquetball to public spaces in Denver and Chicago.

The Racquetball Blog believes the IRT is lucky to have Negrete as their Commissioner. He's dedicated, sensible and puts the game first.

Mannino appointed Deputy Commissioner

Jason Mannino will be assisting Negrete this season, as he has been appointed Deputy Commissioner. Mannino's role - according the IRT website - will be to "help the IRT streamline information to tournament directors, create new events, improve current events and assist in player relations."

Mannino, a former #1 IRT player, will continue to compete on the tour this season.

Follow the bouncing ball....