London, Nov 9: The ITF announced that it has relaunched the official website of its global participation campaign Tennis Play and Stay: www.tennisplayandstay.com
The new look website is part of the ITF’s overall strategy to redesign its whole family of websites, following on from the relaunch of the official ITF website, and Davis Cup and Fed Cup competition websites.
The aims of the new-look Tennis Play and Stay site are to provide additional online resources for national associations, players and coaches; generate greater interest in the campaign; and improve the ease of navigation for visitors who want to start playing tennis.
Tennis Play and Stay is the ITF’s global initiative launched in 2007 aimed at increasing tennis participation worldwide. Tennis Play and Stay centres around the slogan of ‘Serve, Rally and Score’ and seeks to promote tennis as an easy, fun and healthy sport. Fundamental to the campaign is the use of slower balls by coaches working with starter players, ensuring that their first experience of tennis is a positive one by serving, rallying and scoring from the first lesson.
The new Tennis Play and Stay website provides greater access to information on the campaign and each of its supporting programmes, starting with the Tennis10s initiative that promotes the use of slower and lower bouncing balls, shorter and lighter rackets, and smaller courts to make it easier for children aged 10-and-under to take up the game.
The three types of slower balls are intended to be used at different stages of a player’s tennis development. The ‘Red’ ball, made of foam or felt, is 75 per cent slower than a regular yellow ball, and aimed at children aged five to eight on a court sized 12 x 6m. The ‘Orange’ ball is 50 per cent slower and aimed at eight-to-ten-year-olds on a court sized 18 x 6.5m. The ‘Green’ ball is 25 per cent slower and aimed at more advanced nine-to-ten-year-olds on a full sized court.
The ITF has also introduced a new National Associations area that will allow each federation to showcase and share information relating to their specific development programmes, bringing all programmes under one website for the first time.
There are also sections on competition formats, including supporting resources and embedded videos; health and tennis, including research studies on the physical benefits of tennis; and starter tennis equipment, in which manufacturers can share product information and contact details.
The website will further evolve over the coming months, with expanded content, increased functionality and the launch of the new starter adult programme. —- ITF
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