The second annual Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet was an opportunity for the members of Manitoba’s tennis community to recognize the accomplishments of players, club members and volunteers over the past year.

The highlight of the evening was the induction of Jim Ioanidis, Eleanor O’Gorman and Hilda Lewis into the Manitoba Tennis Hall of Fame. Jim’s wife, Joanne, and many members of the Ioanidis family came forward to accept the award on behalf of Jim, one of the most accomplished players in the history of tennis in Manitoba. Eleanor joined us from Toronto, where she is currently managing the sports shops at the four Mayfair Racquet and Fitness Clubs. It was great to hear her reflections of her time in Manitoba, where she was very successful as both a junior and Open player. Jeff Burridge accepted the award on behalf of his great aunt, Hilda. It is very apparent that she had a tremendous impact on the tennis community for many years as she set the record for the most Manitoba Open Singles Championships.

Kyla McNicol and Doug DeVriendt were named Female and Male Players of the Year, respectively. This was the second consecutive year for both of these great players to receive these awards. The 2008 Awards Banquet and Hall of Fame Dinner will be held next October.

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Seasons Greetings!

In honor of 2006 Manitoba Tennis Hall of Fame inductee, Art Foster, a new award was created in 2007 to recognize the Most Sportsmanlike Junior player in the province. Art was a very competitive player who was always a gentleman on the tennis court. The award was donated by Art's wife Gay and can be viewed at Taylor Tennis.

The inaugural recipient of the Art Foster Most Sportsmanlike Junior award is Sean Bailey of the Kildonan Tennis Club. He demonstrates the same qualities of fair play and sportsmanship that were so much a part of Art Foster’s game. He is a great role model for the young players that are just starting to play competitive tennis.

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Additional Junior News

} Junior Scholarship Winners Announced
} Provincial Team Selections Made
} Important Changes to 2008 Indoor Junior Nationals Qualifying
} Players Benefit from Tennis Canada Presence at Prairie Regrouping
} Tennis Canada Announces 2008 Indoor Junior Nationals Dates

Robert Kennedy, a school teacher with an unparalleled passion for tennis, is the recipient of Tennis Manitoba’s Community Champion award for 2007. Robert was recognized at the Awards Banquet and Hall of Fame dinner on October 4th at the Sun Center at Canad Inns Stadium.

Robert has been involved in tennis in Manitoba for 25 years, having started back in 1983 at the Deer Lodge Tennis Club. It did not take long for him to develop a genuine love for the sport and this carried over to the schools he taught at. For the past 18 years he has volunteered his time teaching an after-school program at various schools in the Seven Oaks School Division.

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The top-ranked ranked Canadian men’s singles player, Lee Carter of Winnipeg, Manitoba, a rising star on the international scene, won the men’s final Sunday at the 2007 Birmingham National Wheelchair Tennis Championships in Whistler, BC. His first singles national title came the day after he won his first doubles championship.

“At the beginning of the year this is what I wanted, a national championship. It means everything,” said Carter, whose first ever tournament was the 2003 Nationals.

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