Julian Illingworth and Ben Oliner

Julian Illingworth was a 4 time All-American while playing at Yale. He went on to win a record 9 SL Green US National Championships, and reached a world ranking of #24 in the PSA world rankings representing Team USA in numerous World Junior and Men's Open World Championships.  He now coaches squash in his hometown of Portland Oregon where he is a devout Blazers and Timbers fan. In addition to his coaching duties in Portland, Julian is also involved as an advisor and coach to the Team USA Performance Academy preparing elite college students for the steps required to be successful turning professional. He has a wife (who played squash in college for 1 year!) and 2 young sons and drives a Rav 4.  

Ben Oliner played # 1 at Brown University for four years and during that time, the Bears held a national ranking as high as # 9 in the country. He went on to play professionally and reached a career high ranking among the top 8 in the U.S. Ben has coached at Vassar College, as well as at Princeton, Bowdoin, and Brown summer camps. For the last ten years, he has worked at a New York city private school directing programming, coaching squash, running summer camps and tournaments and preparing and helping students to get recruited to play college squash in the U.S. He currently lives in Brooklyn NY, with his wife and has a young son, daughter, and chocolate lab and also drives a Rav 4. (Ben's is faster!) When he's not chasing his kids, Ben spends his free time studying team cultures and sport analytics. 

Ben and Julian first met in High School over twenty years ago playing the US Junior Squash tournament circuit while trying out for the U.S. Junior National Team.  While Ben was a few years older, it became apparent that Julian had no respect for his elder compatriot and blazed through his defensive-minded, retrieving adversary. Nonetheless, Ben and Julian became life long friends through their love for the sport of squash, like minded approach to the game, as well as thirst for adventures. Their respective journeys through the sport brought each on a path all over the world and in contact with fascinating people, places, sights, and sounds. Collectively, they have travelled to tournaments in twenty -seven states and over twenty countries. While Julian holds a lifetime record over Ben in squash, don't ask who has won more in ping pong. Go Brown Bears!