The EB Tennis Academy has been working for the higher a part of 30 years with the longstanding goal of additional advancing the event of tennis on the regional degree in southwestern Quebec. Within the course of, it has made the game extra accessible and created a rising neighborhood that has change into extra like a household.
The academy, which is run by Étienne Bergeron and his spouse Kirsten Björn, was one of many deserving recipients of the Recreation. Set. Fairness. Neighborhood Tennis Grant offered by Nationwide Financial institution. At the side of the academy, Björn additionally operates Modwellness which gives psychological coaching periods for the gamers and coaches. In the summertime, they function out of 5 completely different outside golf equipment and on the Centre Multisports in Vaudreuil, Quebec within the winter. The objective is for the grant to profit as many individuals as doable already within the numerous applications and entice new candidates as properly. Already they’re working with individuals of all ages, from four-year-olds who’re selecting up a racquet for the primary time to a 95-year-old leisure participant who’s an inspiration to everybody he crosses paths with. The academy focuses on 4 key pillars: creating feminine coaches, leisure gamers, the aggressive stream, and wheelchair tennis.
Björn needs to get extra teenage women fascinated about teaching and ultimately to pursue their certification whereas not solely bettering their approach but additionally serving to them develop as individuals. They’ve additionally been utilizing the funds from the grant to assist their athletes at occasions, junior gamers, and rising the feminine aggressive program the place they cowl the psychological, tactical, bodily, and gear points of the sport.
READ MORE: GIRLS LEADING GIRLS TENNIS POSITIVELY IMPACTING THE GAME IN NOVA SCOTIA
Natalia Lanucha, one of many members of the EB Tennis Academy wheelchair tennis crew, was not too long ago chosen to affix Tennis Canada’s program. Bergeron and Björn proceed to help in her growth because of the grant, together with psychological coaching periods in addition to personal on-court coaching blocks.
Bergeron is acknowledged by Tennis Canada and the Worldwide Teaching Institute as a Excessive Efficiency Coach and Membership Skilled. He additionally travels with junior provincial groups to nationwide and worldwide tournaments. As for Björn, who comes from a household of athletes in crusing and snowboarding, she discovered her area of interest in psychological coaching with youngsters.
“Early on, I wasn’t so centered on simply the advantages of excessive efficiency, but additionally the advantages of changing into your finest self,” Björn defined. “To present you context, I’ve had individuals ask me if my child’s not going to be a professional, is there any level? I reply with: are they loving it? If sure, there are such a lot of advantages to taking part in sports activities and changing into knowledgeable is just a small piece of that. Our best pleasure is when somebody is happy with themselves, it doesn’t matter what that accomplishment is and it’s not a cookie-cutter factor. It’s what’s finest for every particular person particular person.”
One of many academy’s alumni is none apart from two-time Grand Slam finalist, Leylah Annie Fernandez. She was in a weekend program at her elementary faculty together with Bergeron and Björn’s son. Over time, they acquired to know her entire household, together with her father Jorge who, earlier than changing into concerned in his daughter’s tennis profession, was a soccer participant and coach. Bergeron would coach Fernandez on a court docket at a park close by by their home whereas Jorge would educate soccer to their son. She would in the end be a part of the academy for a number of years and continues to take care of her relationship with them to today.
Björn is hoping that the grant will enable extra younger women to comply with in Fernandez’s footsteps sooner or later by creating extra alternatives to get them concerned within the sport.
“We’re so grateful to have this chance as a result of for everybody we’ve been in a position to contact it’s been good for them, they usually’ve loved the brand new publicity to tennis,” she stated.
