Thierry Lincou (born 2 April 1976, in

La Réunion LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

) is a retired professional

squash Squash may refer to: Sports * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling * Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...

player from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. He reached the World No. 1 ranking in January 2004. That year, Lincou won the World Open title, the Hong Kong Open and the Super Series Finals. He has been known as one of the greatest lateral movers in the game, as well as being one of the fittest players in the history of squash. His nickname, "titi", was founded by a former competitor, Amr Shabana. He called Thierry "titi-tight," because of his precision and tight shots.

Career overview

Lincou has enjoyed considerable success at the elite level of the game, rising steadily through the ranks since joining the professional squash circuit in 1994. He has beaten all of the world's top squash players including

Peter Nicol Peter Nicol (born 5 April 1973) is a former professional squash player from Scotland, who represented first Scotland and then England in international squash. In 1998, while still competing for Scotland, he became the first player from the UK ...

Jonathon Power Jonathon Tyler Power (born August 9, 1974) is a retired professional squash player from Canada. In 1999, he became the first North American squash player to reach the World No. 1 ranking. He won 36 top-level squash events during his career, incl ...

, David Palmer,

Lee Beachill Lee Beachill (born 28 November 1977 in Huddersfield, United Kingdom) is a former World No. 1 squash player from England. Beachill reached the World No. 1 ranking in October 2004. He also finished runner-up at the World Open that year. Beachi ...

, and many others. Lincou has been one of the most consistent players on the circuit – reaching the semi-finals of nine successive PSA events in 2003, and holding the World No. 1 ranking throughout 2005. In 2003, Lincou was a member of the French team which finished runners-up to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

at the

World Team Squash Championships The WSF World Team Squash Championships are an international squash competition organised by the World Squash Federation (WSF) and played between teams representing different nations. Countries enter teams of three or four players to represent t ...

. In 2004, he reached the PSA World Ranking Number 1 and became the first Frenchman to top the world rankings. In December, he won the 2004 World Open Squash Championship in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

against

5–11, 11–2, 2–11, 12–10, 11–8. He became the first Frenchman to win the World Championship. In the same year, he won the Hong Kong Open against

Nick Matthew Nicholas Matthew (born 25 July 1980 in Sheffield) is a former English professional squash player who has won the two most prestigious tournaments in the professional game, the British Open and the World Open, three times each. He reached a c ...

in the final. In 2006, he won 4

PSA World Tour Sports competitions that are a recurring series of events or races, but do not constitute a sports league. Series Sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ...

titles including the Canary Wharf Squash Classic in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and the prestigious Pakistan Open in

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...

. He was runner-up of the prestigious

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

in 2006 against

and in 2007 against

Grégory Gaultier Grégory Gaultier (born 23 December 1982, in Épinal, France) is a former professional squash player from France. He has won the 2015 World Open Squash Championship, the British Open three times, in 2007, 2014 and 2017, the Qatar Classic in 201 ...

. He won 11 titles of the French Nationals and was one of only five players to have maintained themselves in the top 10 without interruption for 10 years at the

. In October 2012, Thierry retired at the age of 36 after win the Bluenose Squash Classic, the 23rd

title of his career. He is currently coaching the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

varsity squash team.

World Open final appearances

1 title & 1 runner-up

Major
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
final appearances

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
: 2 finals (0 titles, 2 runner-up)

Hong Kong Open: 2 finals (1 title, 1 runner-up)

Pakistan International The Pakistan International is a squash tournament that takes place in Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is fe ...
: 2 finals (2 titles, 0 runner-up)

Career statistics

Singles performance timeline (since 1999)

''To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded.'' ''Note:'' NA = Not Available

References

External links

* *
The Official Thierry Lincou website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lincou, Thierry 1976 births Living people French male squash players People from Réunion World Games silver medalists Competitors at the 2005 World Games College squash coaches in the United States