November 16, 2021
Sierra Leone Lawn Tennis Association has on Saturday dispatched two Lawn Tennis Players and two officials to compete in the Africa Junior Championships that are set to take place in Tunisia from the 16th to 21st November 2021.
According to the President of the Sierra Leone Lawn Tennis Association, they are sending the players and Officials to represent not only Sierra Leone but Central West Africa in the Africa Junior Championship.
He affirmed that the Championship is a big event as 25 Countries are going to compete and Sierra Leone is the only Country from West-Central Africa that is going to compete in the Junior Championships in Tunisia.
He added that
“We believe our coaches have done very well in preparing the boys for the Africa Junior Championships even though they are not paid or on salaries but they are giving their selfless services and they have prepared the tennis players in terms of technical, Physically, and mentally to go and compete and there is strong hope that they will bring laurels back home.”
He further that the Tennis players did not only make their way to the Africa Junior Championships on selection basics but they qualified.
He said before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019/ 2020 the tennis players have been taking part in a series of qualifications and that is why today they are the only under 14 players to represent West Central Africa.
Mr. Kelvin Ezekiel Kelle said the Lawn Tennis Association Executive have done well to make sure that whether there is Government support or not Tennis will continue to make sure that our players represent Sierra Leone.
The Association have single-handedly funded the under 12 Tennis players in Benin where they qualified Sierra Leone to the U-12 Championship and they brought home laurels and they are ranked second in West Central Africa.
They are currently preparing them for the Championship that is taking place in Morocco next month.
“I am asking every citizen, Tennis Lovers, Family and friends to remember the players in their prayers, because it not an easy to go the north Africa Country with the weather conditions and to compete with the best under 14 players in Africa is not an easy task,” he added.
Amado Koroma the head coach of the Sierra Leone Lawn Tennis said since the time the international Tennis federation send us the tennis players that have qualified we have been in intensive training both technical, tactically, and mentally.
He added that the support from the assistant coach and the others have helped us to get the players as they are in high spirits and well determined because in the last qualifiers in Togo they played exceptionally and they are ranked 6th and 7th in West Central Africa, we know the countries we are going to meet in the Championship but we are going to do our best and become Champions.
The International Tennis Federation World Tennis tour gives players aged 18 years and under the opportunity to travel the world and develop their talents, if Sierra Leone did well they stand a chance to get a scholarship from the international federation.