Club secretary Tony Podesta, who has been running Tony Tennis for 32 years, says the award nomination follows the Merrylands Multicultural Girls program, a pilot held in June in conjunction with Tennis NSW, which saw Year Six girls from nearby Hilltop Road Public School receive tennis coaching over six weeks during their school sport session.
As well as receiving coaching and tips and encouragement from Grand Slam winner Casey Dellacqua, the students received a new racquet, a set of tennis balls and the opportunity to continue their tennis journey in term 3, funded by the Play Program.
“The project aimed at reducing barriers and creating greater accessibility to tennis for people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) communities in NSW who are under-represented in tennis,” Podesta said.
“All the students progressed well with some signing up to continue their tennis journey.”
Picking up his first racquet at Guildford tennis courts when he was 10, Podesta has been coaching since he was 16 and is now 54.
“It was great to offer such a successful program and then receive this wonderful recognition,” he said.
To find out more or how to get your child started in tennis, go to tonytennis.com.
