Almost one in three children in Wales played tennis outside of school hours in the last year, latest figures show - making it one of the country’s most popular sports.
Research just released by Sport Wales has shown a dramatic increase in the popularity of tennis among school children in Wales, in the year that Andy Murray became the first British man in 76 years to win the Wimbledon singles title.
Officials at Tennis Wales have welcomed the statistics, which show a big spike in tennis participation at schools coinciding with a major focus on increasing tennis in schools over recent years in partnership with Sport Wales and the Lawn Tennis Association.
“These figures show that our huge focus and investment in schools tennis is now beginning to pay off,” said Tennis Wales chief executive, Peter Drew.
The Sport Wales study shows a substantial increase in the amount of tennis now being played in schools, putting tennis as the fourth most popular sport, in any setting, among school students in Wales in Years 3 to 11.
Football (51%), swimming (48%) and rugby (32%) fill the top three places, with tennis next on 31%.
The study also reveals that tennis is now one of the sports which schoolchildren in Wales would like to play more - perhaps inspired by Andy Murray’s win at Wimbledon. Swimming (40%) and football (37%) are the most popular choices here, with tennis third on 30%.
“Over the last four years we have trained teachers in more than 500 schools across Wales in how to deliver fun and easy tennis activities using modified tennis equipment,” explained Peter Drew.
“All of these schools have received a free pack of Mini-Tennis equipment so that they can continue to deliver tennis classes to the children.
“The results of this research show that this has had a tremendous impact, and that tennis is a sport that young children are very keen to play if it is delivered in the right way. Tennis is one of the few sports which can be played by people of all abilities and all ages – it’s a game for life, and it’s really pleasing to see more children embracing the sport, and seeing it as a long-term option.”
He added: “With so many ways to play, such as touchtennis, cardio-tennis and other forms, tennis has never been more accessible.
“The game has tremendous benefits for individuals in terms of physical and mental health, and these knock on as benefits to society in Wales more widely. More youngsters playing also gives us a bigger pool of talent to draw from when it comes to competition and high-performance tennis.
“Hopefully this improves the chances that one day we will perhaps see some of these youngsters from Wales following in Andy Murray’s footsteps and competing at Wimbledon, which would be fantastic.”