World Tennis Day on March 10; USTA To Host Events Nationwide

The United States Tennis Association (USTA) announced it will be hosting thousands of youth tennis events throughout the month of March as part of the  celebration of World Tennis Day on March 10. These events, part of USTA’s commitment to improve the health and wellness of children by getting active through tennis, serve as an opportunity to encourage families and children of all ages and skill levels to try the sport at  local tennis facilities. A complete listing of events can be found on youthtennis.com.

“These events are a tremendous platform embraced by the entire tennis industry to enable children and families to try tennis in their community,” said Katrina Adams, Chairman, CEO and President of the USTA. “It brings a fun environment to kids and introduces them to a sport that they can enjoy throughout their lives.”

The USTA has leveraged World Tennis Day on March 10 as a kick-off for facilities to register children for spring and summer tennis programming. Since 2009, more than 8,000 youth tennis events have been held as part of this initiative.

World Tennis Day celebrates the past seven successful years of the youth tennis initiative. Youth Tennis is focused on ensuring a positive first experience for kids by making the game easier to play and more fun to learn with kid-friendly equipment sized right for children of all ages and abilities. Making the game more inviting has been integral to the success of youth tennis, enabling more kids to experience the social, health, and psychological benefits of the sport.

World Tennis Day also is highlighted by the BNP Paribas Showdown at New York’s Madison Square Garden, this year featuring 17-time Grand Slam singles champion Roger Federer taking on rising star Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria in one match, and tennis legends Monica Seles and Gabriela Sabatini squaring off in the other. The USTA Foundation will serve as the official charity of the BNP Paribas Showdown for the second consecutive year, and the  event will help support the funding of scholarships and programming grants to under-resourced youth.

The BNP Paribas Showdown is a production of StarGames and MSG Sports. Tickets are on sale now at the Madison Square Garden box office, online at thegarden.com and all Ticketmaster outlets.

To find a youth tennis event and information how families can get involved, visit youthtennis.com.

  The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the United States and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level, from local communities to the highest level of the professional game.  A not-for-profit organization with more than 715,000 members, it invests 100 percent of its proceeds in growing the game. It owns and operates the US Open, the highest-attended annual sporting event in the world, and launched the Emirates Airline US Open Series, linking eight summer tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns approximately 90 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S. and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games. The USTA’s national charitable foundation, USTA Serves, provides grants and scholarships and helps underserved youth and people with disabilities. For more information on the USTA, log on to usta.com, “like” the official Facebook page, facebook.com/usta, or follow @usta on Twitter.