McEnroes Continue Growing Tennis from the Ground Up

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: August 4, 2011

commentComment        

It is a stifling summer night on the east side of New York City, but Gabby Price isn’t worried. 

The pixie-sized nine-year-old is belting returns to Martina Hingis, one after the next, as the near-sellout crowd of over 2,500 watches and cheers every shot.  Off to the side, Serena Williams and John McEnroe watch attentively and cheer and high-five Gabby and some of the other young kids as they come off the court.  

It is another step forward in the evolution of American tennis under the watchful eye of McEnroe, his brother Mark, club owner Claude Okin and the ever growing staff of the John McEnroe Tennis Academy.

The night is actually the culmination of the World Team Tennis regular season, a grueling month of July which saw the hometown Sportimes falter down the stretch and miss the playoffs, while the visiting Washington Kastles (with Williams on board) ran the table for an undefeated season and the league championship. 

But the overall focus of the month, and the last year, has been on keeping an eye out for young tennis talent that can be cultivated under the watchful eye of McEnroe and his Academy, which opened in the gleaming new facility on Randall’s Island last September. 

By all accounts, the first year of the Academy was a smashing success.  Enrollment of several hundred far surpassed expectations, with students day tripping from as far away as Pennsylvania to be evaluated and trained by McEnroe, head pro Gilad Bloom and the other 20 or so pros. 



Each finished a regular school day, then found their way to the Academy, using the computer facilities for homework assignments as they waited their time on court. 

“I think what we are trying to do with the Academy is find the right balance for kids of tennis and other activities,” McEnroe said. “It is the way I learned growing up and it worked, so f...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

Latest News


Comments

Comments are closed.

Sponsors

Bruins Tickets The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Red Wings Tickets The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.

Penguins Tickets The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New York Rangers Tickets play their home games at Madison Square Garden, they are one of the oldest teams in the NHL, having joined in 1926 as an expansion franchise, and are part of the group of teams referred to as the Original Six.

San Jose Sharks Tickets The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States.

Toronto Maple Leafs Tickets The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New Jersey Devils Tickets The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Washington Capitals Tickets The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C.

Buffalo Sabres Tickets The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. Get the Sabres and all of your NHL Tickets here.

NASCAR season is on of the most attended sports in the world. NASCAR Tickets to the best tracks is a must every year. Some of these tracks are: Talladega Tickets, Lowes Motor Speedway Tickets, Pocono Raceway Tickets, located in Ridgeway Virginia you have Martinsville Speedway Tickets and southern US you have two of the most popular Atlanta Motor Speedway Tickets and Texas Motor Speedway Tickets. Don't miss all the racing events this year!

Boston Red Sox Tickets The Boston Red Sox are a member of the Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Since 1912, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park. This is one of the hottest MLB Tickets sales of any team in the major league.

New York Yankees Tickets The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division. Get tickets to one of the hottest games of the season Yankees Red Sox Tickets.

Chicago Cubs Tickets The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League.

Phillies Tickets The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883.

Orioles Tickets The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Do you love wrestling? Get your WWE Tickets and WWE Survivor Series Tickets today!