The first of four Great British Tennis Weekends received a fantastic reception from the public nationwide and Dorset venues experienced a brilliant turnout from local residents and even a two-time Paralympic Gold medallist.
One of the most popular events in the county was at Southbourne Tennis Club whose event included the reopening of their clubhouse which was recently refurbished to include disabled access and facilities. On the Saturday, the club welcomed two-time Paralympic Golf medallist Peter Norfolk OBE to official reopen the clubhouse, local Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood and the Mayor and Mayoress of Bournemouth, Cllr Dr Rod Cooper and Elaine Cooper, also attended the event and showed their support.
The Southbourne event saw around 50 non-members visit the club on the Saturday which hosted activities ranging from Cardio Tennis to coaching, as well as disability tennis in which Norfolk took part in. During the event, Norfolk said “I think this is fantastic, this is what we need to do, it’s all about the grass roots. This is how we can get new disabilities, new players [involved in tennis]. How else do they know how to play? That’s how I started, I just went down to my local tennis club.
“The Tennis Foundation with the LTA are doing a fabulous job. It’s just so exciting. What I love about tennis is, tennis is tennis. The rules are the same, the suns out, the courts are the same size, what else do you need? I just think it’s so exciting that Southbourne and clubs like this are doing so much and we need to encourage them.”
After a sporting a Rafael Nadal-like forehand and a somewhat Cricketer’s backhand during a rally with the Mayor, local Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood said “This is fantastic, it shows that Bournemouth isn’t just a wonderful tourism resort and also a lovely place to live, but it’s an experience, it’s what people do in their spare time, it’s a sense of community. This clubhouse is a fantastic facility that makes not just the tennis players feel at home, but the whole family environment as well. I’m really pleased to see this, it serves not just Southbourne, but the whole of the community and fits in to a big jigsaw of interest in tennis right across the conurbation and it’s great to see.”
Around the rest of Dorset, hundreds of people visited various venues over the Saturday and Sunday to try their hand at tennis. Just under 100 people participated at the Poole Park courts and another 100 locals took part in the activities at Sherbourne Tennis Club over both days, with 10 new members joining the club as a result of the event.
The next Great British Weekend is on the 28th and 29th of June and there will be plenty more for the Dorset public to see and do at several events. On the Saturday; Swanmore Gardens Tennis Courts, Southbourne Tennis Club and Winton Rec Tennis Courts are hosting a variety of activities whilst on the Sunday; Christchurch Tennis Facility will opening its doors for an event that will include; Cardio Tennis, adult and junior coaching, a prize raffle, family time, teeny tots tennis, Mini Tennis and free play starting at 10am, so sign up for free today at www.greatbritishtennisweekend.com to ensure your place.
By Harry Lund