Wyatt Khosroshahi can be described as nothing less than a stellar athlete. Training around nine hours a week, he has risen to become one of the top nationally ranked juniors in the nation, and joined Hackley’s Varsity Boys Squash team in eighth grade. His passion for squash has driven him to be the best he can be, and to always push himself to the limit.

Wyatt started playing squash when he was seven years old, and his hunger to win pushes him to dedicate so much of his time to training. He was first inspired to play because his father is a former squash player. There are many reasons athletes may play a sport, but for Wyatt, it’s simply his love for the game and for competing. “After a couple of my first successful competitions, I sort of got addicted to competing and just wanted to go out and keep winning,” said Wyatt, “I was inspired to be the best, which has fueled my hunger for the game.” He also enjoys how the game tests his physical and tactical abilities every time he steps on court. Wyatt definitely puts his abilities to the test by competing in many major tournaments every year in both the US and internationally.

Wyatt has competed in a few places overseas such as Cologne in Germany, and Amsterdam in the Netherlands, along with several domestic places such as Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, and Baltimore. By traveling to different places, Wyatt has the opportunity to hit with all different types of players. He’s found that the competition abroad is much bigger than in America, so he’s been able to use those matches to help him improve. He’s had many great achievements, such as reaching number eleven in the nation when he was still under fifteen, and winning a big summer tournament that same year. Since Wyatt is ranked in the top thirty two, he also qualifies for all the Junior Championship Tournaments.

Just like any athlete, Wyatt faces many challenges in squash and has had some tough losses throughout the years as well. One of his major losses happened at a Junior Championship Tournament where he was the number five seed. “This was probably my most important and disheartening loss I’ve experienced,” said Wyatt. However, Wyatt learned that he needs to play his best against everyone, no matter who they are. Wyatt has learned how to handle these situations and says that he learns a lot from losing and it motivates him to play better in his next tournament. “I enjoy playing tournaments and competing to see how good I can get, and if you lose to someone, training really hard to see if you can beat them the next time,” he said.

After a tough match, Wyatt will usually go to hit some balls on his own, and have a recap with his coach about what he did well and what he needs to improve on. Wyatt enjoys the challenges the sport brings and has fun trying to overcome them. The most challenging aspect of squash for him is maintaining his physical fitness because of how physically demanding the sport is, but “that’s most of the fun in it,” says Wyatt.

Travelling for tournaments is a big part of Wyatt’s life, but he has learned how to handle it, and balance squash with his schoolwork. He says that “travelling for tournaments can be tough,” but he always makes sure he’s received all the work from his teachers before he leaves. When he has a bit of spare time, he always makes sure to get work done whether it’s in the hotel room, or on the plane.

Ever since Wyatt joined the Hackley Squash teams in seventh grade, he’s been an incredible asset and a great leader. He’s been able to help the team in matches, and challenge and inspire his teammates in practice. In eighth grade, Wyatt moved up to Varsity and continued to drive his teammates to improve. “Wyatt inspires us to become as good as him every single day,” says teammate Salik Awan, “he’s the unofficial leader of the team due to his vast experience.”

One of Wyatt’s most major wins has also been for the team. Wyatt described it as a “fairy tale” story because it was against a guy he knew was a top player. Hackley was tied with Riverdale 3-3, and his match was the deciding match. He ended up winning in the fifth game after being down several points. Wyatt says he enjoys playing with the Hackley team more than competing outside of school. “I’ve found that it’s a completely different experience,” he said, “and I think I have more fun playing for school.”