Vanessa Atkinson
Atkinson during 2009 Women's World Open | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vanessa Louise Atkinson | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 10 March 1976 Newcastle, England | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right Handed | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Turned pro | 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Liz Irving | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Racquet used | Karakal | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Women's singles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (December, 2005) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Title | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tour final | 42 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Open | W (2004) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| Updated on 3 December 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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.
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 and a former World No. 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. Atkinson also has won major tournaments in Qatar, New York, Monte Carlo, Malaysia and Ireland.
Atkinson retired from professional play in May 2011.