Tennis Emirates Nurtures Local Talent and Tomorrow's Rising Stars

Dubai, UAE, February 20th, 2007: Tennis Emirates today held the first of two clinics at the Dubai Tennis Championships in a scheme which aims to find and nurture local talent among budding tennis players in the UAE.

High caliber under-14 year olds from around the region were invited to take part in the clinic and benefited from the guidance of UAE Tennis Federation coaches and special guest players Shikha and Neha Uberoi, from India, and Selima Sfar from Tunisia.

Sfar, who has served for several years as an inspiration for women players all across the Arab region, grew up playing under a similar program in Tunisia and shared her insight for success with the twelve young players.

“Discipline is the hardest part of making it as a tennis player,” she said. “That doesn’t mean it’s not fun. Tennis always comes first, everything else after.”

“I really enjoy being part of these clinics,” Sfar said afterwards. “When we are little, you always look at something that makes you dream a little bit. It seems more concrete if you see the people who’ve achieved it. It brings motivation and it gives you a reason to work more every day.”

The number one under-14 UAE National, Fatma Al Janahi, said: “It was great that we could play with professionals. We’ve all had some good hits with them.”

Fatma, 11, is already an accomplished player with a bronze medal from the Arab under-12 Championships in Tunisia and also came third in the 2006 ITF West Asia Championships in Jordan.

“I was very impressed with the level of the girls here today,” said Neha, who is ranked in the Top 200 on the women’s Tour. “They had very good technique and footwork.”

Her sister, Shikha, added: “I wish I had more opportunities like this when I was younger. It means so much to be one-on-one with professionals.”

Brigadier Al Marri, Secretary of the UAE Tennis Association, has been a driving force behind the clinic, which was created as part of an ongoing programme intended to build the relationship between the Federation and the region’s academies.

He said: “We’ve been trying for a long time to promote tennis. It’s a long process but an important part is that the kids are happy to hit the ball. It’s about encouragement from the Federation as well as the family.”

The Tennis Emirates Clinic is an annual feature of the Dubai Tennis Championships. A second clinic will be held next week with the region’s up and coming male players during the Dubai Duty Free Men’s Open.

The Dubai Tennis Championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and takes place under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

For further information: John Rynehart, Promoseven Sports Marketing,
(T) +9714 3210008; (M) +971 50 55 96795; john.rynehart@promoseven.com