Mamelodi parents are encouraged to start supporting their children in sport and create a link between the parents and the coaches.

This message was sent by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and Tennis South Africa (TSA) when they hosted a successful Tennis development programme at Impilo-0720 Tennis Development Club in Mamelodi West on May 11.

The development program focused on practical learning, trust-building between coaches and parents, and planning for the next phase of club growth.

The young players and the coaches had the opportunity to engage in different activities with the ITF and TSA officials.

Patrick Selepe, Grassroots Tennis manager from TSA, said that he visited the programme with another ITF official, Tapiwa Masungu, originally from Botswana.

“We saw it as a very important aspect for her to visit the clubs in South Africa, specifically, the Junior Tennis Initiative clubs (JTI), which are in Tshwane and Johannesburg.”

Selepe said the first visit they made was to the Impilo-0720 Tennis Development Club, which is part of the JTI, and it is all about the support, both for the players, their parents and coaches.

Masungu said, “The visit is all about support, because we have junior tennis clubs running within our different communities, but there is no support between parents, and [we need to] create a link between the parents, the coaches, and the players.”

She said we are visiting South Africa, particularly around Gauteng, where a key objective of the ITF is to continue to grow tennis participation, and that tennis is a very popular sport for both children and adults to participate in.

“We have been working with Tennis South Africa to see how we can grow the sport around the country and get more people to be able to access tennis.”

Masunga said that they have been collaborating with clubs that already exist, that have been doing work on the ground, particularly community clubs.

She described the visit, particularly to Mamelodi, as one where they are engaging with the parents, players, and coaches at the clubs.

According to her, the first goal is to get parents to appreciate the role of tennis, and the ITF’s role in tennis here, and how best to support parents on how best they can support the journey in tennis.

“We believe the workshop was well received, and it’s just… for people to appreciate and get information, that’s where things start,” she said.

She added that without information, without knowledge, it is very difficult for people to get into a program or activity.

“And so I believe that the parents that came… now have a broader picture of what the sport is, that it is accessible to everyone, and that it is a sport that they can continue their journey on with their children.

She said that South Africa has already produced good tennis players, who have brought pride to South Africa on the world stage.

A parent, Nosiluhle Mahlole, said, “We are very privileged to have TSA and the ITF to grace our grounds; our children need that. We believe that our children now have a focus.

“Our children have an understanding of how special they are, to have the TSA and ITF officials come and share their knowledge of the sport with them.

“As parents, we are going to support our children until they get to a level where they play as professional players locally and internationally.”

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