Mark Woodliffe's victory at the recent World Masters Squash Championships in Perth was an achievement that not only set new records and defied repeated medical setbacks, it also continued an extraordinary family legacy.
In lifting the over-65s trophy in Western Australia, Englishman Woodliffe became part of a select group of players who have won titles in the British Masters Nationals (in his case, nine times), the British Open Masters (also nine), the European Masters (three) and World Masters (now one).
The first man to achieve this was none other than his father, John Woodliffe, whose ground-breaking collection of British National, British Open, European and World Masters titles were all secured in the over-70s. Now 90, he remains the only player to have achieved this stellar title quadruple in the same age category.
John and Mark both won trophies at the same British Open Masters on three occasions (2007, 2011 and 2017) as well as at the 2011 European Masters in Porto, where John won the 80+ and Mark won the 50+ age group.
"Repeating my father's achievement of 15 years ago is something I'm extremely proud of," Woodliffe jnr tells Squash Player a day after returning from Australia.
"It's a lifetime's ambition realised. There's still a buzz. That certainly helps with jetlag as well as muscle pain. Isn't it funny that when you win, nothing hurts quite as much as when you lose?"
In addition to its historical significance, Mark's victory in Perth was exceptional for the intimidating obstacles he overcame along the way.
Going in as a 5/8 seed, the draw pitted him against Australia's Geoff Davenport in the quarter-finals. Davenport is the all-time men's World Masters record holder with seven titles and was competing in his home country, yet Woodliffe took him out in straight games.
Next up in the semi-finals was South Africa's 3/4 seed Trevor Wilkinson, himself a winner of three World Masters trophies. He was dispatched in four tight games.
In the final was Willie Hosey, a four-time World Masters title winner and another legend of the Masters scene. After winning the first two games, Woodliffe was pegged back to two-all by the Irishman, who then led 7-4 in the decider. But Woodliffe proved resolute, taking a momentous victory 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 6-11, 11-8.
"This is what makes it all the more precious," he reflected. "To come through three really hard games against three great champions... that's an unbelievable feeling.
"The draw wasn't terribly kind; three world champions with 14 titles between them back-to-back! But at least you knew where you stood. It wasn't a shock or negative in any way. The job in front of you is clear. You've got to bring your A game.
"I love the mental side of squash, I love the challenge. In a mental battle, I back myself not to do anything stupid and make mistakes.
"Against Willie, at 7-4 down in the fifth, if I'd have lost the next two points, it might have slipped away. I just tried not to give anything away. The margins were so tight."
What made Woodliffe's celebrations all the sweeter was the personal context of adversity which had characterised his build-up to the tournament.
It was only earlier this year that he'd finally come off medicine for muscular rheumatism — a severely painful inflammatory condition that he'd first contracted through a Covid jab.
His battle with rheumatism had lasted over three years and obliterated his squash career. At the start, he was incapacitated so severely that he couldn't dress himself. It took many infuriating months just to get an accurate diagnosis.
"In that period, if I'd been offered the ability to even play a friendly game and never play again, I'd have taken it," he admits, looking back. "It was very painful and arduous, the whole journey."
Mark lived in Zurich for 18 years (he combined PE teaching with coaching at the famous Grasshopper Club) before moving with wife Patricia (a former world no.148) to her home town of Hamburg. It was there that Mark had the fourth Covid jab which led to a spiral of heinous circumstances.
"It was a question of whether I'd ever get back on court," he reflects. "The effect [after the jab] was almost immediate and it got worse and worse."
Woodliffe radically altered his diet and lifestyle to mitigate the painful symptoms. He attempted to get back on court but found "the tank soon ran dry." During this period, he also suffered four lengthy relapses of an old calf injury.
After an eventual diagnosis and cortisone treatment, he finally got back on court properly in January this year. With the support of his wife and close friend Predi Fritsche (a fellow European and World Masters champion) he put in many hours of disciplined training at the Kaifu Lodge club in Hamburg.
Woodliffe said: "It's been so sweet to get back to a place of being competitive again. To pull this World title out of the bag just completes the journey and makes all the sacrifice worthwhile."
