International Federation Tennis Development Department

ITF Monthly E-Mail Newsletter for Coaches, Year 6, Issue 2, February 2005 ------

The ITF Development Department is pleased to welcome you to the February edition of its ITF Monthly E-mail Newsletter.

In an effort to keep you informed and updated on ITF coaching matters worldwide, in this issue of the newsletter you will find:

* ITF Finalises Plans for Tsunami Assistance * Development Events * “ITF Approved Tennis Balls and Classified Court Surfaces” published * Position opening: ITF Pacific Oceania Training Centre in Lautoka * Tutor's Course in Iran * Cruyff Foundation International Junior Camp - Oceania/Asia Region * News from National Associations and other organisations

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ITF FINALISES PLANS FOR TSUNAMI ASSISTANCE

The ITF Board of Directors, during its regularly scheduled last month in Melbourne, Australia, has finalised a comprehensive plan for immediate and long-term relief for its member nations affected by the tsunami disaster at the end of last year.

The ITF will donate its share of the gate from upcoming and Fed Cup World Group matches to assist young people in the affected nations. As both Davis Cup and Fed Cup were founded to foster friendship and cooperation among nations through sport, the ITF Board felt that it was entirely appropriate that these competitions would make a significant contribution to the worldwide tsunami relief efforts. The ITF will also encourage the host nations of Davis Cup and Fed Cup ties to consider a fund-raising drive during the competitions that can be added to the total donated by the ITF. The ITF will also establish a fund for tennis facilities reconstruction and equipment distribution for the affected nations.

The ITF will ask its member nations to contribute to this fund both to rebuild the tennis infrastructure throughout the region affected by the tsunami and for the acquisition and distribution of equipment. The two tsunami relief projects, to which the ITF will contribute in excess of US$250,000 plus anticipated contributions from its member nations, will be managed by the ITF’s Tennis Development Department in consultation with the Asian Tennis Federation and its President, Salvador H. Andrada. “The ITF has been impressed by the generosity of the entire tennis community following the tsunami disaster,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti. “The ITF understood immediately that we needed to provide a thoughtful response to this tragedy that would allow us to make both a contribution towards the immediate needs of the area and a long-term commitment to help to rebuild the tennis infrastructure in our affected member nations. We took the opportunity to meet with the Asian Tennis Federation here in Melbourne to assess an appropriate response both for the short and long term benefit of our affected member nations. Over the next few weeks, we will ask the rest of our tennis family to join with us in this effort.”

The ITF is the world governing body of tennis with 203 member nations and six regional associations. The ITF owns and manages Davis Cup by BNP Paribas and Fed Cup, the world’s largest annual international team competitions in sport, and organises the Olympic Tennis Event on behalf of the International Olympic Committee. Responsible for a wide range of activities from junior to senior tennis, wheelchair tennis and men’s and women’s professional circuits, the ITF also administers a comprehensive development programme to encourage the growth of tennis throughout the world. ------

DEVELOPMENT EVENTS

10 January - 13 February: ITF Central American & Caribbean Junior Touring Team to COSAT circuit - , , , Peru and Bolivia 14 - 20 February: ITF/OS Pre-Level 1 Coaches Course, Grenada 14 - 25 February: ITF Level 2 Coaches Course, Costa Rica 19 - 27 February: ITF Level 1 Coaches Course, Colombia 1 - 9 March: ITF Level 1 Coaches Course, Quito, Ecuador 10 - 19 March: ITF Level 1 Coaches Course, Guayaquil, Ecuador ------

“ITF APPROVED TENNIS BALLS AND CLASSIFIED COURT SURFACES” PUBLISHED

Last week saw the publication of the January 2005 issue of “ITF Approved Tennis Balls and Classified Court Surfaces”. Compiled by the ITF Technical Centre, this annual booklet lists all balls that are approved for tournament play under the Rules of Tennis. In addition, over 50 surfaces that have obtained ITF Classification for surface pace are also listed. This comprehensive booklet provides information on the testing procedures for ball approval and court surface classification as well as contact details for all manufacturers. All ITF National Associations will be receiving copies of this booklet by mail within the next few weeks. As additional balls are approved, and court surfaces classified, they shall be listed on the ITF web site.

To view the current list of 2005 ITF Approved balls, please go to: http://www.itftennis.com/abouttheitf/rulesregs/balllist.asp. To view the current list of classified court surfaces, please go to: http://www.itftennis.com/abouttheitf/rulesregs/courtlist.asp. ------

POSITION OPENING: ITF PACIFIC OCEANIA TRAINING CENTRE IN LAUTOKA

The ITF has an opening for a new Head coach at the ITF Pacific Oceania Training Centre in Lautoka. As you are aware the training centre currently has 14 of the top young players from the region in attendance and these players have the chance to train full time whilst continuing their education. The profile of the coach would ideally include:

* Fully qualified tennis coach with experience of working with high performance players * Good playing background * Good interpersonal skills * Computer literate and capable of preparing reports etc * Have experience of the Pacific region * Hard working and committed to the tennis and personal development of the players in attendance.

The role will involve approximately 80-100 hours per month of on court work. In addition the coach concerned would be living in the ITF house (self contained apartment) and in addition to the on court duties would be responsible for overseeing the well being of the players and to ensuring that all aspects of the centre accommodation/food/education/tournament planning etc) operate effectively. The package will include a reasonable salary including free accommodation at the centre.

The ITF in conjunction with the OTF hope to be in a position to appoint a replacement by the end of March at the latest. CV's should be sent to Dan O'Connell ([email protected]) by February 15th at the latest. ------

TUTOR'S COURSE IN IRAN

The first National Tutors' Training Course was held from 3-10 December in Tehran (Iran). The Federation's goal was to educate and prepare the participants, all women, to work as tutors of national level coaching courses and run the relevant development programs on the women's side. Two Iranian experts, Amir Borghei and Jalal Fathi established the whole program and conducted the course as tutors. During this course we officially introduced the ITN NUMBER to participants and to the Tennis population.

The course had a length of 8 days and run for a total of 54 hours (28 on court and 26 in lecture room). 19 candidates took a previous exam (written and playing level tests) which was given 6 weeks before the course and 8 got qualified. The topics included in the curriculum of the course included: Introduction to ITF world - development, communication skills for the tennis coach, ethics, teaching methodology & styles, GBA Vs. MA, biomechanics, mental training in tennis, advanced techniques, movement applied to tennis, Qualitative Analysis, corrective techniques, individual & group training in tennis, tactic & strategy, match analysis and designing game plan, physical training in tennis, working with female tennis players, first aid for tennis, Pre-tennis / Mini-tennis. The sources used for the course were: The ITF Advanced Coaches Manual, as well as resources from the LTA, Tennis Coaches Australia and PTR, provided by the course tutors, which were referred to regarding the specialised topics. After the course, candidates were assessed with a written exam, an individual lesson test, and a group lesson test. ------

CRUYFF FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR CAMP - OCEANIA/ASIA REGION

Ten players and three coaches representing Australia, New Zealand and Singapore took part in the Cruyff Foundation International Junior Wheelchair Tennis Camp for the Oceania/Asia region, which was held at Caloundra Tennis Club in Queensland, Australia on 21-25 January. Led by Australian National Coach Greg Crump, the camp was a great success, with the strongest field of players assembled at an Oceania/Asia camp yet, boding well for the success of future camps in the region.

During the camp eight of the players took part in a knockout tournament, with play-offs to decide final positions for all eight players. Michael Esler (AUS) emerged as the winner of the tournament, beating fellow Australians Ben Beare and Dylan Alcott en route to the final, where he accounted for Heath Davidson (AUS) 61 62. The Oceania/Asia Camp is the first of four international camps supported by the Cruyff Foundation in 2005, with further camps to come in the regions of Europe/Africa, North America and South America.

The Cruyff Foundation supports and stimulates play and sport for children worldwide, with special attention given to sports programmes for children with a disability. As well as developing junior programmes in wheelchair tennis, the partnership between the Cruyff Foundation and the ITF has also made a great impact in the Silver Fund project. ------

NEWS FROM NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND OTHER ORGANISATIONS

Australia: Former great Fred Stolle was named in the Australia Day honours as an officer in the Order of Australia (AO).The No.1 player in the world in 1966. Stolle won 18 tennis titles, including two crowns, in the 1965 French championships and the 1966 US championships. As well as his Wimbledon finals of 1964 and 1965, Stolle was also runner up in 1963 with his other Grand Slam titles coming in doubles. He was also a member of the Australian Davis Cup teams between 1964 and 1967. Since those days he has continued to contribute to the world of tennis, writing a number of books and among the players he has coached to Grand Slam success have been Vitas Gerulaitis and Mary Joe Fernandez. A member of the Sport Australia and Halls of Fame, Stolle was voted Coach of the Year in 1975 and 1979 and inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985. He now lives in Florida but was in Melbourne during the Australian Open commentating for TV and competing in the senior event. Stolle also hosts the annual ITF World Champions Dinner. “It’s a huge honour and very much unexpected,” said the 66-year-old. It’s nice to be recognized even if I’m not living in Australia.”

Egypt: Position available for a suitably qualified physical trainer at the Shooting Club in Egypt. Shooting Club is the third biggest Tennis Club in Egypt. They had the best 3 girls in Africa last year under 14 years old. Magy Nader Aziz, Ola Abu Zekry and Nehal Tarek Saleh. Applicants should have: A great knowledge of Tennis, preferably to be an ex good tennis player. Bilingual (English, French or Arabic). Good Attitude, good CV and good experience with one of the professional tennis players. Good manager, i.e. dealing with parents, players, club board of directors, etc.. and be a good planner (short term; and long term). The position is fulltime and offers a reasonable salary. Contact: Bassel Rahmy, Shooting Club Tennis Head Coach: [email protected]

India: AITA Residential and day camp program. All India Tennis Association (AITA) has opened a fully equipped training centre for tennis. It is centrally located in the heart of New Delhi and will provide advance training to talented and promising players. ITF trained coaches and former international players will share their knowledge. The academy would help players to improve their game to international level but would also run various programs such as physical and mental training, tennis drills etc. Apart from tennis training the academy has facilities of eating, boarding and lodging, schooling etc. for national and international players. For further details log on to www.aitatennis.com

Portugal: Curso de tenis en silla de ruedas. Los pasados días 14 y 15 de enero, tuvo lugar en Lisboa el “I Curso Nacional de Especialización en Tenis en Silla de Ruedas”, concretamente en el Club de Tenis de Estoril, organizado por la Federación Portuguesa de Tenis y realizado en colaboración con la Federación Internacional de Tenis y la Real Federación Española de Tenis. En este curso participaron trece técnicos y tres jugadores de tenis en silla de ruedas. El curso fue impartido por David Sanz Rivas, capitán del Equipo Español de Tenis en Silla de Ruedas. El presidente de la Federación Portuguesa de Tenis inauguró el curso y animó a los asistentes a colaborar en la promoción y difusión de esta modalidad deportiva, confirmando el interés de la Federación en atender esta especialidad del tenis. El responsable del tenis en silla de ruedas en Portugal, D. Joaquim Nunes y el Secretario General, D. Jose Santos, estuvieron presentes durante todo el curso y desde aquí les agradecemos el trato recibido, deseándoles los mejores éxitos en el desarrollo de este deporte en Portugal.

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Dave Miley and Miguel Crespo- Authors Patrick McInerney - Editor

ITF Monthly E-Mail Newsletter for Coaches is published monthly.

International Tennis Federation Tennis Development Department c/o Miguel Crespo c/ Pérez Báyer, 11, 10º A 46002 Valencia Spain E-mail addresses: [email protected] *********************************************************************** ITF LICENSING (UK) LTD Bank Lane, Roehampton London SW15 5XZ ENGLAND Ph: 0044-(0)20 8878-6464 Fax: 0044-(0)20 8878-7799 ***********************************************************************

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