7th - 12th September
With the weather turning nasty again for the end of the second week in New York City, play was indeed affected on the flushing meadows site. Brace was one of the officials due to work on Armstrong on the Thursday that Roddick and Ferrer refused to play, deeming the court to be unplayable.
This great picture shows Josh helping mop-up water coming from below the court, whilst Roddick, Ferrer and chair umpire Carlos Bernardes decided on the courts suitability for play.
‘After a discussion it was agreed the court was too wet and they decided to move the match to court 13. My team of line umpires followed the match to the out side court. As you can imagine the atmosphere out there was amazing. The cowed was jam packed and the match will always be remembered.’
‘Once play was done and I’d finished up at the tournament, it was time to celebrate a successful few weeks. We visited one of my favourite roof top bars that over looks the Empire State building, with amazing views over the skyline of Manhattan.’
I think it’s safe to say the young white badge umpire has had a fantastic experience over the last few weeks and is now on his way back to Europe for the next swing of tournaments.
‘I'm working in Nottingham this week at the Men's $10k, before travelling to Sweden next week for three weeks of more futures.’
His trip doesn’t end there as he will attend the Stockholm ATP event then head back to Britain for two more British futures, before eventfully getting some well end time off.
All fifteen British officials who attended the US open 2011 had a successful year and well done to all. Special mention James Keothovong who officiated the men’s singles quarter final, Alison Lang who officiated one of the Women's Singles Semi final and Graeme Jones who was service line umpire for the Women's Singles Final.
We wish Josh and the rest of the team the best of luck for the forthcoming year and will catch up with them soon on there adventures!
2nd - 6th September
As the second week of the final Grand slam of 2011 begins, Brace updates us on his experience so far.
"The long days have started to take their toll, but as the final approaches my adrenaline is kicking in. I’ve been on a mixture of courts from Arthur Ashe to court 15. Today I'm on court 11 for two ladies singles and two mixed doubles quarter-finals. Other outside courts have begun playing the US Open junior tournament. Being involved at a Grand slam as a junior is just as important as the main draw matches, and as professional umpires we provide the same level of concentration no matter what match we are on."
Josh is one of fifteen British officials working at the open this year. Their jobs vary between Line Umpires, Chair Umpires, Hawkeye officials and Supervisors. Brace explains to us how the tight team organise an evening of socializing:
"Every Grand slam we have a Brit night. This is where we all get together for dinner and possibly a bit of Karaoke if we’re feeling particularly patriotic! We are all good friends anyway but it's great to get together and welcome newer people to the group. I'm really looking forward to this later in the week."
Unlike Wimbledon, the US Open has night sessions, and tomorrow night Brace will be one of the 18 officials working on the Arthur Ashe court.
"Night sessions are known to have an amazing atmosphere which will enhance the experience. The session could possibly include Federer, Nadal, Serena or other incredible talents. It’s going to be fantastic!"
Being on night sessions means that Josh doesn’t need to report until 5pm so he’ll be making the most of New York’s shopping and sightseeing potential. Don’t spend too much of those hard earned ‘bucks’ now Joshua!
27th August - 1st September
With the dramas of the Hurricane behind him Josh Brace has been enjoying his first few days at the 2011 US Open.
It's great to be back in New York City. It really is one of the most amazing places in the world, working here is like a dream.
After arriving on Saturday from New Havan, Brace was hotel bound like the rest of the 8.5 million citizens of the city until late on Sunday when he was eventually able to get out and stretch his legs.
The Flushing Meadows site is situated in Queens and accommodation for umpires is in Manhattan, so a 45 min bus journey to and from the site is required every day. On Monday morning it was a 7.30 am start for young Brace:
There’s always a lot to do on the first day of a tournament so you need to get there early. There’s accreditation to get, uniform to pick up and morning briefings to attend. Things can be manic!
Every day Josh is assigned a different court to officiate on, which this week has included a day on the Arthur Ashe stadium, which is referred to at the Open as ‘The big house!’
I was really lucky the day I had on Ashe stadium, as both the No.1 seeds in the women's and men’s draws were playing. The American crowds know how to create an atmosphere!
After the matches on his day in the Big House, Brace the singleton, had some time to see around the city.
Last night I managed to finish early enough that I could go out and see the sights. I went with one of the Australian officials down to Brooklyn Bridge and watched the sun-set.
With four successful days already under his belt, the Redditch lad looks forward to the week ahead with excitement.
17th - 26th August
At 10:35 am on Wednesday the 17th of August, Josh Brace, one of Britain’s promising young officials, boarded Virgin Atlantic flight VS003, destination John F Kennedy airport, New York City.
The young man from Redditch, Worcestershire, has headed across the ocean on a three week trip appointed to him by the United States Tennis Association.
His travels this week have brought him to the University of Yale, one and a half hours north of New York City, where he will officiate as a Line Umpire for the WTA’s lead up even to next weeks US Open.
Josh, who has been officiating since January 2004, commented;
‘It's great working at a tournament that I've not been to before, in a city that I've not visited and on an Ivy League college campus with such prestige and history.’
One of the great things about working as a tennis official is that every day is different and you never know when the next challenging situation is going to be thrown your way. When Brace woke up on Tuesday the 23rd of September he was completely unprepared for the global event that was heading his way! At 1:51pm New Haven and the historical Yale University suffered the after waves of an earthquake.
‘I was calling service line for J.Jankovic vs E.Vesnina match and there was an earthquake which shook the stadium court during a rally. At first I wondered "is the wind blowing my chair side to side?" as it swayed on the court but then, looking up at the stands, I watched as windows shuddered and people shook. Play was suspended and the stadium was evacuated immediately. The epicentre was 500 miles south and the quake measured 5.9 on the Richter scale.'
Play resumed after an hour or so and Brace continued his role as service line umpire for the centre court match. Weather wise New Haven has been lucky this week so earlier finishes have meant the 25 year old official has had some time off to relax before the long days he will encounter at the Open next week.
Josh will be finishing of his duties on the WTA Premier event final on Saturday night before making the short journey down to NYC to start at Flushing Meadows on Monday.
We look forward to following his progress over the next few weeks.