Richard Pagliaro's blog at Tennis Week yesterday contained this story about Levar Harper-Griffith and the new foundation, called Global Tennis, that he and two other partners have formed to assist juniors who lack the financial resources necessary to pursue the sport.
“Our goal with the Global Tennis Foundation is to try to fill a gap so to speak in that a lot of these kids get into tennis and have the ability to achieve but tennis, in this country, is so expensive it’s difficult to try to play the game at a high level,” Harper-Griffith says. “The training, the travel, the coaching, the equipment, the masseuse, the stringing, the physical therapy - it can be an enormous expense. I know from experience: my mom was unbelievable and she worked so hard and sacrificed so much to give me a fighting chance, but some kids don’t get that chance. There’s got to be a way to help these kids at the grass roots level and that’s what we aim to do," Harper-Griffith tells Pagliaro.
The foundation's website is the vehicle the trio would like to use to get in touch with juniors in need. It also includes a list of donation requests, which range from equipment to housing to frequent flyer miles. Harper-Griffith expresses no bitterness when talking about the USTA and their role in player development, he just sees an opportunity to make a difference in his own way.
And speaking of the USTA, James Blake did a mailbag for tennis.com this week. Here is the final question:
“Our goal with the Global Tennis Foundation is to try to fill a gap so to speak in that a lot of these kids get into tennis and have the ability to achieve but tennis, in this country, is so expensive it’s difficult to try to play the game at a high level,” Harper-Griffith says. “The training, the travel, the coaching, the equipment, the masseuse, the stringing, the physical therapy - it can be an enormous expense. I know from experience: my mom was unbelievable and she worked so hard and sacrificed so much to give me a fighting chance, but some kids don’t get that chance. There’s got to be a way to help these kids at the grass roots level and that’s what we aim to do," Harper-Griffith tells Pagliaro.
The foundation's website is the vehicle the trio would like to use to get in touch with juniors in need. It also includes a list of donation requests, which range from equipment to housing to frequent flyer miles. Harper-Griffith expresses no bitterness when talking about the USTA and their role in player development, he just sees an opportunity to make a difference in his own way.
And speaking of the USTA, James Blake did a mailbag for tennis.com this week. Here is the final question:
Q. What do you think needs to be done in order to ensure a good future for American tennis? – KristenFor the complete mailbag, click here.
A. I think the UTA (sic) can help younger players and work in harmony with the player's coach. It's difficult to get them all together in such a large country geographically. So they may have to be more trusting of the junior coaches that have helped the talents already get to where they are.
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