Click
on the image above to read the Spring 2013 issue!
Local Deaflympic player
seeks funding
Local deaf tennis player Richard Noel has a unique opportunity to represent the USA in the 22nd Summer Deaflympics
this July in Sofia, Bulgaria, but as the deadline looms to find the funds necessary to make the trip, he's coming up a little
short. Born and raised in Indianapolis, Richard was not only chosen for the team out of a group of deaf athletes from
all over the U.S., but will also become the first deaf black man to participate on the USA tennis team. Unlike
other teams competing, the tennis team lacks corporate sponsorship, requiring its participants to raise their own funds. In
addition to playing out of West Indy Racquet Club, Richard also serves as coach for the middle school track team at the
Indiana School for the Deaf. You can help Richard reach his goal by clicking on the link below, which will take
you to his fundraising website. Richard's story was also featured recently on WISH-TV (a link to that story is
also included below). (5-15-2013)
If you are having trouble finding an outlet for your tennis skills, don't blame the
Central Indiana Tennis Association (CITA). CITA has announced it is expanding its offerings by taking over the local
World Team Tennis (WTT) recreational league, beginning this summer. The WTT Rec League is set up similar to the pro
WTT tour, with a minimum of two men and two women required per match. Divisions will be offered at the 3.0, 3.5 and
4.0 levels, with local winners eligible to advance to one of several regional qualifiers with the opportunity to qualify for
the national WTT finals. WTT employs a unique set of rules that include playing let serves, no-ad scoring, and free
substitutions during games. Team registration is currently open through May 24, with league play running from June 2-July
28. For more information, go to www.wttrec.com. To register, select "Recreational Leagues" click on Indianapolis, IN-CITA World Team Tennis. The
local WTT rec league originated at the former Indianapolis Tennis Center and moved to Team Witsken Tennis when the center
was closed. (5-10-2013)
It's back-to-back
titles for Rajeev Ram
Rajeev Ram made it two titles in two weeks on the ATP Challenger Tour by winning the singles championship at the 2o. Rio Quente
Resorts tournament in Brazil. Seeded number one, Rajeev went three sets to defeat unseeded Andre Ghem 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
in the championship match. Ram earned $5,000 and 80 valuable tour points, which pushed him into the top 100 singles
rankings. A week earlier, Ram and partner Prakash Amritraj took the doubles championship at the Soweto Open in Johannesburg,
South Africa on May 3. The unseeded pair upset top seeds Rik deVoest and Marcelo Demoliner in the second round, 7-5,
6-4; third-seeded Mate Pavic and Goran Tosic in the semi-finals, 6-3, 1-6, 10-5, and then topped the second-seeded team of
Purav Raja and Divij Sharan in the final, 7-6, 7-6. The pair earned $6,200 for the win, along with 110 ATP Tour points.
Photo by Reg Caldecott. (5-4-2013)
Reinbold named ITA's
top volunteer
Carmel's Jennifer Reinbold has benn named the recipient of the Intercollegiate
Tennis Association (ITA) and USTA Collegiate Varsity Volunteer of the Year Award for 2012. Reinbold, a USTA Midwest Collegiate Varsity Sub-Committee member, has been a leader in promoting
tennis programs in the Midwest section. One of Reinbold's major efforts was the Adopt-a-Regional initiative for the 2012 USTA/ITA
Division III Men's Central Region Championships in Indiana. Reinbold served as the lead tournament committee member involved
in "adopting" the regional event. She was instrumental in helping coordinate the event, getting additional volunteers
to help out, and went as far as housing more than 10 athletes during the event. "Tennis is what I know, I loved the whole
experience of it" said Reinbold. "It may be volunteer work but it's so rewarding."
The ITA Collegiate Varsity Volunteer of the Year Award, presented by the USTA is awarded
to a USTA volunteer who provides a leadership role in encouraging, promoting, organizing and executing campus and community
tennis programming while working closely with ITA member varsity coaches, colleges, and universities. Specifically, this award
recognizes the significant contributions in helping to promote varsity tennis through supporting Campus Kids' Days as well
as other outreach events and Collegiate Information Sessions & Forums.
Her work in the USTA Midwest also includes organizing college information nights in the Central
Indiana District. "I have a son playing at Case Western in Cleveland and I have gone through the college process but
at the time I didn't know much about the process" said Reinbold. "So I thought if I didn't know, then others probably
don't know. I felt like the information nights weren't reaching the number of students that want to play college tennis."
Since heading the college information nights, Reinbold has seen a substantial growth in attendance, raising attendance to
over 70 people. A South Africa native, Reinbold grew up playing tennis, eventually making her way onto the ITF and pro circuit
before getting married and having children. "When my kids were born I was just involved in every level of tennis"
said Reinbold, she continues "I've seen how my son has grown by playing college tennis and I'm just excited to help other
kids."
Julie Bliss, the Director of Competition & Player Development for the USTA Eastern Section, received
the ITA Collegiate Varsity Performer of the Year Award. Both were honored during the USTA luncheon at the 2012 ITA Coaches
Convention at the Waldorf Astoria in Naples, Fla.. (2-15-2013)
More headlines . . .
USTA/Midwest Section hands out awards at
Spring meeting
The USTA/Midwest Section honored its 2013 Midwest Spring Award winners at an awards luncheon on
Saturday, April 13. The luncheon was during the USTA/Midwest Section Spring Meeting at the Renaissance Indianapolis North
Hotel in Carmel, Ind.
Cap Leighton Award – Chuck Kuhle from Decatur,
Ill. Community Tennis Association Award – Evanston
Community Tennis Association, Evanston, Ill
Fred Burns Award
– Sharon Russell from Cincinnati, Ohio.
Helen
Shockley Award – Gabriela Rosales from Munster, Ind.
Wallace R. Holzman, Sr. Award – Jacob Dunbar from Medina, Ohio
Member Organization of the Year Award –
Chicago Prairie Tennis club from Chicago, Ill.
Stanley Malless Award – Eric Schacht from Chicago, Ill.
Frank Dowling Award – Ron and Carol Gander from
Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
Wheelchair Performance Award – Curt and Lynn Bender from Zeeland,
Mich.
(4-15-2013)
Recent features - click to read . .
.
(pro)file: Woodstock Club's Tom Moore
Fitness: Improve your play with a good sports performance program
IRC member helped fuel Mardy Fish's rise to the ATP Tour's Top 10
Evansville Memorial tops Cathedral for IHSAA girls' title
Coming in the Summer issue of Indianapolis
Tennis:
Coverage of the
IHSAA girls' state team and singles/doubles tournament finals
Pearson
Ford Open at Woodstock Club
(pro)file: Five Seasons Sports
Club's Kurt Ehrhardt
Local deaf tennis player Richard Noel has a unique opportunity to represent the USA in the 22nd Summer Deaflympics
this July in Sofia, Bulgaria, but as the deadline looms to find the funds necessary to make the trip, he's coming up a little
short. Born and raised in Indianapolis, Richard was not only chosen for the team out of a group of deaf athletes from
all over the U.S., but will also become the first deaf black man to participate on the USA tennis team. Unlike
other teams competing, the tennis team lacks corporate sponsorship, requiring its participants to raise their own funds. In
addition to playing out of West Indy Racquet Club, Richard also serves as coach for the middle school track team at the
Indiana School for the Deaf. You can help Richard reach his goal by clicking on the link below, which will take
you to his fundraising website. Richard's story was also featured recently on WISH-TV (a link to that story is
also included below). (5-15-2013)
Rajeev Ram made it two titles in two weeks on the ATP Challenger Tour by winning the singles championship at the 2o. Rio Quente
Resorts tournament in Brazil. Seeded number one, Rajeev went three sets to defeat unseeded Andre Ghem 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
in the championship match. Ram earned $5,000 and 80 valuable tour points, which pushed him into the top 100 singles
rankings. A week earlier, Ram and partner Prakash Amritraj took the doubles championship at the Soweto Open in Johannesburg,
South Africa on May 3. The unseeded pair upset top seeds Rik deVoest and Marcelo Demoliner in the second round, 7-5,
6-4; third-seeded Mate Pavic and Goran Tosic in the semi-finals, 6-3, 1-6, 10-5, and then topped the second-seeded team of
Purav Raja and Divij Sharan in the final, 7-6, 7-6. The pair earned $6,200 for the win, along with 110 ATP Tour points.
Photo by Reg Caldecott. (5-4-2013)
Evansville
