ITF launches effort to push tennis globally
This entry was posted on June 25, 2007 10:14 AM and is filed under In the News.
By Liza Horan
Wimbledon—The International Tennis Federation, backed by governing bodies on the recreational and pro sides of the sport, have launched "Tennis...Play and Stay" to attract new players and hook them.
The unique approach scales the game to starter players so they can achieve success quickly. A smaller court, lighter balls and different sized racquets are appropriated for the size or age of the new player.
"Our research proved that, on the whole, although tennis did an okay job at attracting players it wasn't so good at retaining them," says James Newman of ITF Development, which presented a seminar on the program in February that was attended by more than 80 tennis providers in 28 nations. "A big part of this is the way starter players, young and old, are introduced to the game. The majority are put on full-sized court with (regular) balls and are fed from a basket for the majority of the lesson; the result being that most of the lesson is spent picking up balls and listening to irrelevant technical instruction, rather than playing the game."
The approach of "Tennis...Play and Stay" struck a chord and, Newman says, "the response from nations, the professional tours and manufacturers so far has been very positive."
In fact, Brazil and Israel launched the program more than one month before the official program announcement on June 20. And, the ATP and the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour have been filming player endorsements for the program over the last several weeks also.
The ITF program is the first initiative of its kind to promote participation globally. The U.S. Tennis Association and the Tennis Industry Association (U.S.) have worked together for years to boost domestic activity. The Tennis Welcome Center effort, started in 2003, has been the largest and most successful. Nearly 2,000 facilities offer beginner and continuing programs. More than 6.1 million new players tried tennis in 2006 at a Tennis Welcome Center. That's up from the average of 5.8 million per year for each of the prior three years.
The USTA is planning to adapt the ITF approach to its introductory programs.
For more information, visit http://www.tennisplayandstay.com and http://www.tenniswelcomecenter.com
