GAME, SET & MATCH

The UAE Tennis Federation reflects on a great year

The UAE Tennis Federation, lead by H.H. Sheikh Hasher bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum, has continued to champion tennis in the UAE throughout 2019, establishing a good base for local development of the sport, with the full support of the General Authority of Sports, the UAE National Olympic Committee and the Sports Councils in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. The federation is working on a strategy to move tennis from a recreational level to a competitive and performance sport.

H.H. Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum and the Board of Directors reviewed a number of important aspects that the federation is looking forward to implementing during the next season. The most prominent is the further development of academies, increasing the number and engaging citizens, as well as developing the overall return of the teams.

The federation praised the efforts of the Competition Committee, who organised 179 tournaments at local level in the last season – an increase of 47 new tournaments across different age groups and categories. The figure includes 148 tournaments in Dubai and nine international championships across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah. Both the ITF and ATF congratulated the UAE TF for its achievements.

The UAE Tennis Federation and International Tennis Federation have officially signed the Juniors Tennis Initiative (JTI), organised and supervised by the ITF, with the participation of more than 100 countries around the world, including 25 Asian countries.

The UAE Tennis Federation is seeking to expand the base of practitioners and spread the game across the country through the registration programme for players, clubs, academies, coaches, stadiums, tournaments and events.