Leveling Up

Joyjit Sensarma is a coach to many high-level partnerships. He was the coach of the USA Seniors teams that won the world championship in 2024 and finished third in 2025. He has also coached the Indian and Irish national teams.

Gonzolo Goded started playing on Spain’s junior team in 1996 and joined the open team in 2008. He studied computer science and worked as a programmer before he became a full-time pro. He is currently working on the Bridge Owl system, which uses cameras at clubs and tournaments to create a full and (hopefully) accurate record of the bidding and play. I first met him at the NABC in San Francisco, where he was doing a test of the system in the Soloway.

Sjoert Brink is one of the top players in the world. Together with his partner Bas Drijver, he has won the Bermuda Bowl three times—once for the Netherlands (2011) and twice for Switzerland (2021 and 2023)—and the Open Olympiad for the Netherlands (2016). He also won the Mixed world championships playing with Barbara Ferm in 2022. He has won many European and North American championships as well.
Sjoert has 2 kids—Daan and Froukje—and studied economics at Tilburg University. He plays padel tennis, runs, and always goes wrong in the stock market.

Kim Frazer was an international rifle shooter who represented Australia at all levels of competition over a 28-year period from 1978 to 2006. She competed at the Olympic Games in Athens as well as 4 World Championships, 4 Commonwealth Games, winning Gold medals on 3 occasions and multiple World Cups. She became interested in the mental side of sport following an introduction to the subject during a training camp in 1985 and she used mental tools extensively during her shooting career.
She played cards with the family as a child and first played a few games of bridge at lunchtimes while at university in the late 70’s and really liked the game. After retiring from international shooting, she returned to bridge at a local club in 2005 and applied the same passion and competitiveness to the game that she had brought success with her shooting career. She represented Australia on the women’s team in 2017 in Orlando Florida, and has represented her home state of Victoria on Open, Women’s and Senior teams since 2014.
She started writing a series of articles for Australian bridge magazines on Mental Management for bridge in 2014, and these articles became the basis for her book Gaining the Mental Edge at Bridge which won an IBPA award for Book of the Year.
Professionally, Kim held management roles in marketing and business development with Kodak & Telstra. Since retiring from corporate life, she has served on committees at her shooting club and the state & national bridge associations. She is currently treasurer of the IBPA.
She lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her husband John and blue heeler Zoe. Outside bridge she still enjoys shooting, and also cooking, reading, and watching TV series & movies.

Alan Shillitoe is the current England U16 Squad Leader and a former U21/U26 Coach and England junior international. In over 20 years working with the squads, he has coached more than 200 players to have played internationally, many of whom have won medals at Euro/World level.
He also developed the English national Junior Award Scheme and curriculum for youth players and in 2024 was a recipient of the EBU Silver Award for his outstanding service to junior Bridge.