Winnipeg, MB (TM) – The Winnipeg Winter Club is ready to host the Manitoba tennis community on December 2nd. A full day of events is planned and will culminate with a buffet dinner and awards presentation.

The day will unfold as follows:

The evening will include a silent and live auction, with proceeds being earmarked for tennis development in the province. Many great prizes are available thanks to the tremendous generosity of the tennis community.

Tickets are $80 from Tennis Manitoba, 925-5660. Exhibition match only tickets are $10 each or $25 per family.

Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet

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Winnipeg, MB (TM) – Boris Bachynski will be honored as the 2009 Community Champion Award recipient when the tennis community gathers for the 4th annual Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet on Wednesday, December 2nd at the Winnipeg Winter Club.

Boris' tennis endeavors had their beginnings in the late 1940s and early 1950s at Beachside Sport Center located in Boundary Park, Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba. This particular park with its three tennis courts was constructed back in the 1920s during an era of tennis popularity, but then allowed to decay for a couple of decades or more. All that was left was weeds growing on lumpy, hard shale courts, six net posts and a surrounding high fence.

Boris and a friend at the beach decided to rejuvenate the best court by deweeding and then chopping up the baked shale, leveling with hand-made scrapers and an old repaired drum roller. After measuring out a singles court, they found and nailed down some old canvas tapes. The net was devised from a single thin rope stretched across the net posts from which single strands of string were hung in short intervals from the rope to the court surface.

Back court rallies were the order of the day. This initiative prompted two summer jobs which saw all three courts totally revived for both singles and doubles play.

The next tennis endeavor for Boris was forming a tennis committee to save the outdoor shale courts at Taylor Tennis Club from the City of Winnipeg Appropriation Committee. The timely presentations and continued perseverance not only saved the property for outdoor tennis, but prevented a prohibitive rise in annual property rent.

Between these endeavors Boris assisted Bill Serbin and Robert Kennedy for a number of springs with the Tennis Futures program at the Winnipeg Lawn Tennis Club.

His last, and most enduring, project centered around the Victoria Beach Club. After serving for a couple of years as the director of the Victoria Beach Masters Tournament, Boris became the Tennis Convener from 2003-2005. This three-year stint witnessed new programs such as additional levels of play within existing tournaments, instruction for all ages and ability levels and court maintenance assistance by club members.

Boris became the leader in providing a Wimbledon stain look for the existing wooden structures, replacing and modifying the chain link fence and overseeing the court resurfacing project. He was instrumental in accessing local and provincial funding to make sure the revitalization of the Victoria Beach tennis courts would become a reality. This project was his pride and joy upon completion and continues to be so to this very day.

There are still some tickets available for the Awards Banquet that takes place at The Winnipeg Winter Club Wednesday December 2nd at 7:30pm. Ticket holders are also able to witness an earlier scheduled tennis exhibition by some of Canada's highest ranked professional players. Tickets are $80 per person with Tennis Canada providing a tax receipt for the maximum allowable amount.

Proceeds from this year’s Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet will go to support tennis development in Manitoba. Funds will support wheelchair tennis, grassroots programs, school initiatives and junior development programs.

The Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet attracted a capacity crowd last year. Don't miss the chance to see an awesome exhibition of world class tennis and join in the Manitoba tennis community's social event of the year. Get your tickets by calling Tennis Manitoba at (204) 925-5660 or online at www.tennismanitoba.com/tickets
 

See also
Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet
2009 Senior Tour Champions
Top Point Earners to be Recognized at Awards Banquet
Juniors to be Recognized at 4th Annual Awards Banquet

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Winnipeg, MB (TM) – When Roger Federer steps onto the court at the 2010 Australian Open, he’ll be sporting a new racquet from Wilson. If you were hoping we’d spill the beans on what Roger’s new top secret weapon will be – sorry, we can’t do that.

However, for those fans willing to test their Roger trivia skills, Wilson has created a preview web site at Wilson.com/NEXT. Play the BLX Game by correctly answering the 9 questions to grab a sneak peak at the new Wilson racquet.

Wilson has been a strong supporter of Tennis Manitoba programs and is once again the Pro-Am Sponsor for Raising a Racquet for Kids presented by Kids Dental being held on December 2nd at the Winnipeg Winter Club. Tickets are $80 from Tennis Manitoba, 925-5660. Exhibition match only tickets are $10 each or $25 per family.
Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet

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Winnipeg, MB (Kathryn McKenzie) – While the opportunity exists for some to play tennis indoors, usually the winter months are a quieter time for tennis players. The off-season, however, should be used to get some rest, do other physical activities, and improve your tennis fitness. It is the perfect time to get your body ready for next season!

Tennis can be very taxing on the body so first and foremost, it’s important to take a break. Some of the movements in tennis can be quite repetitive which may cause an uneven pattern of tightness and weakness in the muscles. The quick ‘start and stop’ movements required in the sport of tennis can also put a lot of stress on the musculoskeletal system. Taking a few weeks off allows the body to recover from the wear and tear that tennis can cause on joints and muscles by season’s end.

Once you feel adequately rested, it may be a good idea to substitute your tennis with a different activity for at least a portion of the off-season. Many tennis players make the switch to squash but there are aspects of many other sports or activities that translate well into tennis - try yoga, play hockey, or take up something new. These activities will keep you healthy but challenge your neuromuscular and skeletal systems in different ways which helps to keep the body balanced. Furthermore, it’s good for your mental well-being to recharge by participating in something other than tennis for a while.

Another thing to consider is starting a tennis-specific fitness program or building some tennis-specific exercises into your existing workout plan. The off-season is actually the best time to prepare your body for the demands of outdoor tennis and the competitive season. In the early stages, your workout program should focus on developing and improving your balance, core strength, endurance, and flexibility progressing in its later stages to develop and improve your strength, speed, agility, and power.

There are hundreds of exercises that can address these components of tennis fitness. If you are unsure of what to do, it may be wise to invest in a Personal Trainer (preferably one who has a good understanding of the demands of the sport of tennis) to create for you a tennis fitness program. Training the wrong way can hurt your game or leave you prone to injury so it’s in your best interest to see someone qualified. Once you start a program, make sure to begin slowly and progress through the off-season – you don’t want to get bored by repeating the same workout for months. Furthermore, your body will adapt to the workload and you will stop seeing progress should you not adapt and alter your workouts. Again, this is where a qualified Personal Trainer can help.

In essence, using your time in the off-season to rest and train properly to improve your tennis fitness level before the season commences is not only an excellent way to maintain your overall health and well-being but also helps to reduce your risk of sustaining an injury while playing. Most importantly, it should enable you to play better tennis - you may finally be able to beat that friend of yours that always seems to come out on top. See you on the court!

- Kathryn McKenzie (B.H.Kin, B.Ed)
 

About Surefire Fitness
Surefire Fitness is owned and operated by Kathryn McKenzie. She grew up in Winnipeg and has always been passionate about sports and fitness. Kathryn is a Tennis Canada Instructor, Certified Personal Trainer and Sport Conditioning Specialist.
Visit Surefire Fitness web site
 

Surefire Fitness is a silent auction contributor for Raising a Racquet for Kids presented by Kids Dental being held on December 2nd at the Winnipeg Winter Club. Tickets are $80 from Tennis Manitoba, 925-5660. Exhibition match only tickets are $10 each or $25 per family.
Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet

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Winnipeg, MB (Allan Besson / On The Home Front / Winnipeg Free Press) – The Winnipeg tennis community is set to Raise a Racquet for Kids Dec. 2 with a professional display and fund raising dinner at the Winnipeg Winter Club.

Presented by Kids Dental, the event features three of Canada's top male tennis athletes -- Frank Dancevic, Peter Polansky and Philip Bester. Dancevic is Canada's top-ranked player on the ATP Tour this year. Polansky is ranked No. 2 in Canada, Bester No. 5.

Tickets are $80 from Tennis Manitoba, 925-5660. Exhibition only tickets are $10 each, or $25 for a family.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 25, 2009 C8

Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet

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Winnipeg, MB (TM) – The 2009 Tennis Manitoba Senior Tour season came to an end at the conclusion of the Manitoba Indoor Tennis Championships held at Taylor Tennis. Players accumulated points throughout the season at the following Senior Tour events:

      LAZBOY Senior Open
      Winnipeg Lawn Tennis Club Senior Open
      Manitoba Senior Clay Court Championships
      Kildonan Senior Open
      Manitoba Indoor Senior Tennis Championships

The top 2009 Tennis Manitoba Senior Tour point leaders are as follows:

      Men's 35+ Singles: Marc Lloyd
      Women's 35+ Singles: Lori Mann
      Men’s 55+ Singles: Jim Gillies

To view the final 2009 Tennis Manitoba Senior Tour rankings click here.

The 2009 Tennis Manitoba Senior Tour point leaders will be honored when the tennis community gathers for the 4th annual Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet on Wednesday, December 2nd at the Winnipeg Winter Club. They will be joined by the 2009 Tennis Manitoba Junior Tour and Open Tour point leaders.

Proceeds from this year’s Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet will go to support tennis development in Manitoba. Funds will go towards wheelchair tennis, grassroots programs, school initiatives and high performance programs. Those wishing to support the Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet can do so by donating gifts for the live and silent actions, or by becoming an event sponsor. Sponsors contributions will be acknowledged at the event, on the Tennis Manitoba web site and in monthly eNewsletters. To contact Tennis Manitoba for more information on how you can participate click here.

Tickets are priced at $80 per person with tax receipt availability for the maximum allowable amount. The Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet attracted a capacity crowd last year. You won’t want to miss out on Manitoba’s tennis event of the year. Get your tickets by calling Tennis Manitoba at (204) 925-5660 or online at www.tennismanitoba.com/tickets
 

See also
Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet
Top Point Earners to be Recognized at Awards Banquet
Juniors to be Recognized at 4th Annual Awards Banquet
Tennis Manitoba Senior Tour

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      Jim Millican
      President, Tennis Manitoba
      james.millican-AT-tennismanitoba.com
 

      * For above address to work, replace -AT- with @

About Tennis Manitoba

See also
Tennis Manitoba Begins Search for Executive Director
Tennis Manitoba Announces Resignation of Executive Director

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Winnipeg, MB (Geoff Kirbyson, Winnipeg Free Press) – The man who guided Boris Becker to a trio of Grand Slam tennis titles put on a clinic for the province's most promising junior players Sunday -- but his teaching methods weren't limited to tennis.

Bob Brett, a consultant to Tennis Canada for its under-12 boys and girls and under-14 boys' programs, learned from some renowned tennis coaches early in his career, but his mission was to search out the best instructors in the world regardless of their sport.

For example, the Australian-born Brett used common acquaintances of iconic coaches such as John Wooden, coach of the UCLA men's basketball team and winner of 10 NCAA American university national titles, and Doc Counsilman, former coach of Mark Spitz, the gold standard for Olympic swimmers before Michael Phelps, to get some face time with them.

"You can learn so much from other people. Their thoughts on success, what they did, how they were involved with their athletes. They're very detailed in their coaching. They have consistent success, that's what's really amazing about them," said Brett, who worked with about 50 young Manitoban tennis players Sunday.

Brett also tapped into the expertise of Alexei Mishin, coach of Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko, because of his groundbreaking ideas.

"He used to deal with the (Russian) space agency to figure out how they could practise getting more turns. You try to get things that haven't been done before. You try to be innovative."

But Brett didn't stop at learning from other coaches; he also sought out the expertise of other athletes, such as decathlete Daley Thompson and pole vaulter Sergey Bubka, too. He had Goran Ivanisevic, another former protege and Wimbledon winner, work out with the legendary Thompson.

"Training with them you understand just how good they are. (Thompson) was tough, it was a great experience (for Ivanisevic). They don't tolerate less than 100 per cent," he said.

In Canada, Brett's goal is to identify tennis talent and give some continuity to provincial programs across the country. He said it's too early to tell what level of success his students on Sunday will have, but they won't have any unless they're enjoying themselves.

"The goal today was that they want to come back to practice tomorrow, another time, and that they're happy and they get pleasure from hitting the ball over the net one more time. That's the most important thing," he said.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 16, 2009 B3

See also
Learn to play tennis

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Winnipeg, MB (Allan Besson, Winnipeg Free Press) – Winnipegger Lee Carter became only the third Canadian to three-peat in the men's division at the Canadian Wheelchair tennis championships Sunday at Niagara on the Lake, with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory over his doubles partner, Corey Blatchford of Saskatoon.

Carter joins Colin McKeage (2001-04) and Paul Johnson (1991-98) as the only men to claim three or more consecutive titles.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 16, 2009 C88

See also
  Paralympians Carter and Hunter Repeat as National Wheelchair Champions
  All-Prairie Men's Final at Birmingham National Wheelchair Tennis Championships
  Dancevic Shows Support for Wheelchair Tennis

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Open

     Men's Singles – Doug DeVriendt

     Women's Singles – Evann Waschuk

     Men's Doubles – Jared Connell

     Women's Doubles – Evann Waschuk

     Mixed Doubles – Evann Waschuk

4.5

     Men's Singles – Alan Gardiner

     Women's Singles – Lori Mann

     Men's Doubles – Gregg Tkachuk

     Mixed Doubles – Lori Mann

3.5

     Men's Singles – Jake Bergen

To view the final 2009 Tennis Manitoba Open Tour rankings click here.

Proceeds from this year’s banquet will go towards Raising a Racquet for Kids which supports junior tennis development in Manitoba. Funds will assist in schools programs, wheelchair tennis, grassroots programs and high performance programs.

Come join in the celebration and Raise your Racquet as we recognize the strong effort of these stellar players. Tickets for the Annual Awards Banquet are $80 each and can be purchased online at tennismanitoba.com/tickets or by contacting Tennis Manitoba at (204) 925-5660.

See also
Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet
Juniors to be Recognized at 4th Annual Awards Banquet
Tennis Manitoba Open Tour

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See also
  All-Prairie Men's Final at Birmingham National Wheelchair Tennis Championships
  Dancevic Shows Support for Wheelchair Tennis

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See also
  Dancevic Shows Support for Wheelchair Tennis

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Toronto, ON (Tennis Canada) – In a showing of solidarity, Frank Dancevic, Canada’s top male singles player paid a visit to the Birmingham National Wheelchair Championships yesterday at the Club at White Oaks in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario.

A Niagara Falls native, Dancevic decided to take a page out of Rafael Nadal’s book and hit with world No. 28 Lee Carter, the two-time Birmingham Nationals defending champion. However, Dancevic took it a bit further than Nadal, who hit with Esther Vergeer of The Netherlands in February, by actually getting into a tennis chair himself. The two rallied for a bit and put on an impromptu, yet entertaining, show for those in attendance.

The Birmingham National Wheelchair Championships continue today through November 8 and will be web cast live starting at 10 a.m. on both semifinal Saturday and final Sunday.

See also
Coach passionate about his sport

Note: Frank Dancevic headlines the group of players coming to the Winnipeg Winter Club on December 2nd for the 4th Annual Tennis Manitoba Awards Banquet and Hall of Fame Dinner. More details...

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Winnipeg, MB (Winnipeg Free Press) – RICK Bochinski, who has served as executive director of Tennis Manitoba for 10 years, will be leaving that position as of Dec. 4 to take on the job of managing the new four-rink MoosePlex arena. The facility is scheduled to open Aug. 15, 2010 on Portage Avenue, across from the Red River Exhibition site.

"My job is to get that place filled as soon as possible," said Bochinski, adding that all minor hockey, including summer hockey camps, will be the prime tenants.

"I believe there will be some ice opportunities for figure skating, ringette and short track speed skating," said Bochinski, "but hockey is the priority. It's going to be a nice change (from tennis). I'm looking forward to this new challenge."

While he is excited, Bochinski also said in a news release, "I'm certainly going to miss working with everyone in the tennis community. I'm proud of everything that we've been able to accomplish to grow the sport of tennis in the province from schools programs to community clubs and on through to the highest level of amateur competition..."

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 9, 2009 C8

About Tennis Manitoba

See also
Tennis Manitoba Begins Search for Executive Director
Tennis Manitoba Announces Resignation of Executive Director

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Winnipeg, MB (TM) – Tennis Manitoba is seeking a dynamic Executive Director with the skills, enthusiasm, vision and experience to lead the growth of the sport of tennis in Manitoba.

Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director is responsible for the strategic, fiscal, technical and operational leadership of Manitoba’s tennis association. This position offers the opportunity to thrive in a high energy, fast paced and demanding sport environment.

The successful applicant will have a post secondary degree, exceptional leadership and communications skills, strong organizational and time management discipline, experience facilitating sponsorship and fundraising, capacity to work with private and public sector partners, experience in marketing and community relations and good knowledge of both the technical and business aspects of the sport of tennis. The ability to communicate in French is an asset.

Tennis Manitoba offers a competitive compensation package including salary, incentives and benefits commensurate with skills and experience.

Applications including salary expectations should be submitted by December 4, 2009 and include a cover letter, detailed curriculum vitae and the names and contact details of two references. Tennis Manitoba thanks all applicants for their interest. Only those candidates selected for interviews will be contacted.

Please send your resume in confidence to:
 

jobs-AT-tennismanitoba.com
 

* For above address to work, replace -AT- with @

About Tennis Manitoba

See also
Tennis Manitoba Announces Resignation of Executive Director

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