The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association, back in full swing at the National Tennis Centre, is hosting a summer tennis camp with some of the top local coaches passing on their knowledge.

Paula Whitfield, the lead instructor, said they want to continue to enhance the junior development programme by putting on the camp on a daily basis from 9am to noon.

"We need the continuation of players to take over the players who are now representing us at the Davis Cup for men and Billie Jean King Cup for ladies," said Whitfield, who has been a coach on a number of junior national teams.

"We want to be able to train these players and select the better ones to take over and replace the current players who are playing on these teams. We hope to groom them so that one day they can become our players to watch in the future."

The camp, designed for players from five to 16-years-old, is facilitated by Whitfield, Sheneicka Griffin, Edward Turner, Elana Mackey and Genesis Sweeting.

"We have a number of beginners, but everyone is hitting the ball over the net, so they are getting the game downpack," said Griffin, a former junior national player who came up through the ranks.

"We also want them to come back in September to finish off their training and hopefully we can get them to start playing in tournaments by January."

Turner said it's good to see the amount of new faces participating. "We want to make sure that they enjoy tennis so that it will be a long term effect for them," he said. "This is a game that takes years to learn and even more to become good at it.

"So this is the beginning level, this is the foundation for champions for tomorrow. So we just want to be able to recruit them at a young age and nurture their competitive spirit so that in five or 10 years they can go on to play at college and to be able to play on our national teams."

Mackey, back home after completing her tenure as a member of the Mars Hill Lions tennis programme, said her aim is to try and get more players involved in the sport.

"Right now it's at a standstill. Tennis is not where it used to be, so we are really trying to get more players into our summer camp and the after-school programme," she stressed.

"I'm one of the players who played at the junior level, went off to play at college and played tennis abroad. So with all of my years of experience, I hope that I can train some of the new generation of players to compete at those levels."

If any programme is going to be successful, it has to start at the root or the base and as the beginners’ coach, Sweeting said she wants to make it a fun-filled experience for the players when they come out.

"My motto for my babies is 'keep it simple, keep it fun,'" Sweeting stated. "So I make sure that the kids are having fun because at their age, we want to make sure that they are enjoying it and they continue to come.

"Most of our kids catch on very quickly. We've had some that are a bit of a slower level, but they are committed to the task we give them. And they always seem to have a good time because the parents said they have seen the interest in their children from the sessions they are engaged in."

Dekota Maycock, who will be entering grade six at Trinity Christian School, said after she quit gymnastics, she wanted to try something new for the summer to add to her portfolio.

"It's been going well so far," she pointed out. "One of the most important things that I've learned is that when you use your forehand, you also have to use your shoulders to swing your racket and point it down so the shot won't go into the air."

Maycock said she's still debating whether or not she will continue with the sport at the end of the summer.

Home schooled Paul Wong, however, said tennis is a sport that he will definitely continue to pursue and that is why he was interested in attending the camp. "I want to work on my skills and to become better at tennis in general," said the 15-year-old aspiring player. "The camp has been very engaging and it's a lot of fun. I learn to keep the ball in play and the instructors have made sure that we are engaged in what they are teaching us. It's been a lot of fun."