Kauai’s Philip Eliana was one of six players from Hawaii who competed at the 2018 USA Racquetball National Championships in Pleasanton, Calif., last month. More than 200 players competed at nationals.
“It was on Memorial Day weekend. It was good,” Eliana said Tuesday. “Besides the venue, it’s one of the best venues I’d say, but there’s not enough courts. They had to change the format. I usually play with the 50-55 (year olds), but they combined the 40-45s with the 50-55s.”
Eliana, 58, of Hanamaulu, placed fourth in the Men’s Heroes 50+ division. Eliana’s older brother Ruben, a Kauai native who now resides in Long Beach, Calif., placed second in the Singles 60+ division.
“I squeaked to get fourth. Of all the medals I ever won, this was something I really had to earn,” Eliana said of his fourth place copper medal. “It wasn’t a whole lot of people. It was a small draw, but it’s the nationals. The US Team guys get picked to go. … We pulled some medals for us old guys.”
The brothers together placed third in the Men’s Doubles Centurion MCBD event, in which the sum of the players’ ages must equal at least 100 years.
“We did OK considering we don’t really get together and play and train compared to a lot of these guys that get to do it,” Eliana said. “It’s mostly experience and, I don’t want to say the will to win, but it’s like, ‘shoot or go home.’ You know what I mean? It was a really good tournament.”
Eliana has competed at the national tournament previously in Houston, Texas, Fullerton, Calif., Denver, Colo., and Phoenix, Ariz.
Eliana doesn’t practice much these days, but still manages to find time to prepare for future tournaments.
Places to practice is also hard to come by. He said the only place he can practice is at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai’s Westside.
“PMRF is the only court now. I used to be the club pro for Kauai Athletic Club,” Eliana said. “My game has gone down quite a bit, but my heart is still there.”
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Nick Celario, sports writer, can be reached at 245-0437 or ncelario@thegardenisland.com.
