The training ground of champions

We have been lucky enough to work across many different areas of tennis but none is quite as close to our hearts as our involvement with junior tennis. 

My first experience of junior tennis was watching the boys’ and girls’ matches at the 2001 Wimbledon Championships as part of what was then a new writing gig for the International Tennis Federation (ITF). From the start I found it fascinating to see these talented young players serve their apprenticeship and learn not just about how to prepare for and win matches but also how to function in the unique atmosphere of a major tennis tournament. 

Faye Andrews, my co-director at The Emilia Group, spent eight years immersed in junior tennis as part of a long-term, full-time role at the ITF so her bond with this aspect of the sport is arguably even stronger than mine. That’s why we were both delighted when we began working with Tennis Europe at the start of this year, an organisation of member nations across the continent which runs, among other things, the Tennis Europe Junior Tour.

The TEJT has a roster of events for players aged 12-under, 14-under and 16-under, including a season-ending Masters tournament for the top eight players in each category. It boast players from more than 100 countries across Europe, players with a range of personalities and backgrounds with one thing in common - the desire and potential to end up being the best tennis players on the planet. Rafael Nadal, Justine Henin, Caroline Wozniacki, Andy Murray, Victoria Azarenka, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Maria Sharapova (to name just a few) were all in their shoes once; finding their way and growing up while playing Tennis Europe Junior Tour events. 

Rafel Nadal at a Tennis Europe junior tournament

That impressive list of former TEJT players is not limited to Europeans either; Guillermo Coria, Andy Roddick, Juan Martín Del Potro and Sania Mirza all got their first taste of European competition on the tour. If you go back further you get a sense of the role that Tennis Europe has played in nurturing some of the greatest players of all time, from Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to Steffi Graf, Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker and Mats Wilander. 

Clockwise from top left: Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray,
Roger Federer, Boris Becker, Ivan Lendl, Stefan Edberg

As part of our role as media consultants to Tennis Europe, we have twice been lucky enough to attend the Tennis Europe Junior Masters, which is held in Reggio Calabria each October. On both occasions we have loved watching how the players bond and learn from each other, as well as from the educational sessions held during the tournament in which we deliver interactive media training. The ethos of the Tennis Europe Junior Tour is very much like that of the global ITF Junior Circuit (which includes the 18-under Junior Grand Slam events) in that it combines the highest levels of competition and professional-standard tournaments with a commitment to support players’ off-court development too. 

These junior tours are designed to mirror the ITF Pro Circuit, ATP and WTA Tours in every way, even down to having a cumulative ranking system and anti-doping programme. In every sense it is where champions learn their trade.  

Competition to commentary - making the transition

Former British No.1 Anne Keothavong recently swapped her tennis racket for a microphone as she announced her retirement and immediately joined BT Sport’s burgeoning team of expert TV commentators. 

I have known and worked with Anne for many years. She defied two horrible knee injuries (five years apart) to put together a career any athlete would be proud of. It included becoming - in 2009 - the first British woman in 16 years to break into the top 50; seven WTA Tour semi-finals and 12 straight years of representing Great Britain at Fed Cup. Along with Elena Baltacha, Anne set a successful precedent which paved the way for younger British players like Heather Watson and Laura Robson to flourish. 

As satisfying as it must be for a retiring professional athlete to have an impressive competitive CV and strong legacy, retiring at just 30 years old comes with challenges. The question of ‘what comes next?’ can hang over the last few years of an athletic career like a building thundercloud, bringing with it inherent pressures to perform before time runs out. That’s why it is important to prepare for the transition well ahead of time.

The options are there for most athletes, including coaching, sports management and public speaking, but the move into media is the most common. Those who enjoy the smoothest transition into a broadcasting career are the ones who have begun to build up their experience and contacts while they are still competing. 

We advise athletes to begin doing more media in the latter stages of their career for two reasons. Firstly, it builds their profile, engages their fans and gets them noticed. Secondly, it allows them to develop their media skills as they go along and use every interview they do as an opportunity to focus on putting some of the tips we’ve given them into practice. 

Broadcasting on TV and radio isn’t easy, however simple some of its more established commentators make it look, and there is no guarantee that an excellent sportsperson will instantly be a natural on the airwaves. I know from my own broadcasting experience that, like any other skill, it takes time to develop and build your confidence. Sue Barker, Andrew Castle, Mary Carillo, Gary Lineker are just some of the ex-athletes who have made hugely successful transitions from the field of play to studio or commentary box. I’m sure all of them of them would admit that it took time and plenty of hard work to find their voice - both literally and figuratively.

One of the keys to success is to become comfortable talking about other athletes and their performances, which is a huge part of sports media. We proactively seek out opportunities for our players to comment on events, news stories and generally establish themselves as a voice of reasoned opinion. This can also be done by tailoring the content of Twitter and Facebook to include more focus on the sport as a whole or emerging stories. 

As an athletes skills and confidence develop, we can then drive opportunities for them to be studio guests, take on guest commentary stints and do pieces to-camera. This nurturing process has to be managed around training and competition so that performance isn’t compromised. 

With the right advice and support, an athlete can then make a smooth transition from their first career to their second.