LTA launches Junior Futures Potential 2 Programme
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The LTA have today announced that seven talented junior wheelchair tennis players have been selected to be part of a new Junior Futures Potential 2 Programme. Following on from the successful launch of the Junior Futures Potential Programme last year, the JFP 2 programme aims to play a key role in the development of talented, young wheelchair tennis players in the UK, helping them progress towards future international success.
Designed to help gifted juniors to progress up the LTA’s World Class Wheelchair Tennis Performance Pathway, which boasts the likes of Wimbledon Doubles Champions and World Team Cup winners Gordon Reid and Alfie Hewett at its pinnacle, the JFP 2 Programme will sit directly under the JFP Programme on the LTA’s Performance Pathway. With four of last year’s JFP players now ranked in the top 25 juniors in the world, the programme has already proved successful for up and coming British talent.
Comprising six two-day training camps at the National Tennis Centre in London, the JFP 2 Programme will be led by the LTA’s Wheelchair Tennis Lead Technical Performance Coach Rob Cross and Paralympian Marc McCarroll. With focus placed on developing skills both on and off the court, the camps will cover everything from coaching and performance to elite sport education. In addition to the above performance camps, players will also receive a tennis grant from the LTA.
Considered to be at the cutting edge of junior wheelchair sport development initiatives across the world, the following seven talented juniors have been selected for the JFP 2 Programme:
Lewis Evans, 17 (Millfield)
Ruben Harris, 11 (Canterbury)
Ellie Robertson, 14 (Glasgow)
Martha Harris, 15 (Grantham)
Megan Bradley, 14 (Preston)
Oliver Cox, 12 (Swindon)
Joshua Johns, 13 (Derby)
LTA’s Wheelchair Tennis Lead Technical Performance Coach Cross commented:
“The JFP 2 Programme provides an opportunity for the LTA to support and nurture young talented wheelchair tennis players through a clear and defined pathway. With the success of our elite players over the last few years, we want to give more players the platform to continue this success in the future. The initiative was really successful last year so I’m thrilled we are launching a second programme with another seven future British stars. This, in line with the growing numbers of juniors we are seeing taking up the game, really showcases how open and accessible our sport is.”
With an opportunity to seamlessly advance to the first level of the LTA’s World Class Wheelchair Tennis Performance Programme, the future certainly looks bright for the young GB stars.
