IS MY CHILD THE NEXT TENNIS STAR?

submitted by Deborah Cadorette, written by Dr. Sophie Woorons-Johnston and Emily Jones

Parents come into my office on a weekly basis. Their main questions: Is my child any good? How good? Is the time and money I'm spending on tennis worth it? Competing is a race. If you have the information on what it takes to be good, you can move faster. As a former world ranked player and a Ph.D. in sport pedagogy, I have gathered research and personal experience to help you expedite the path to success for your child/student.

First, how do we define success?

My philosophy is, if the child wants it, provide opportunities for success and let him fly to his full potential. Sometimes determining which opportunities are best for your child can be a challenge. Therefore, this article will help you decide what is best for your child to attain his level of success. It is my hope that after reading this article, you will feel more confident and better informed in regard to finances, home schooling/high school tennis, time and emotional commitment.

To facilitate the process, we have included stepping stones to success:

STEPPING STONES TO SUCCESS

1. Let the child dream.
When the Bryan brothers were young their father Wayne took them to a Stanford University match. They told him "Dad, we're going to play for Stanford and then we'll play the US Open." Wayne took it all in and smiled. Little did he know that given the opportunity his children would become the No. 1 doubles team in the world!

2. Answering the dream question.
Most of my students have big dreams, "Sophie, will you come watch me when I play at the French Open?" Here is how I typically respond, "You bet I will. You'll find me in the front row cheering you on! Here's what we're going to do. There are 3 tournaments next month. Let's see how well we do there [short term goals], then we have to prepare for the State Championships. I really would like for you to concentrate on developing your big first serve [technical/strategy goal] by next year. I'd like to see you in the Top 20 [Specific, high, but realistic measurable goal]."

In my mind, when gauging the child's ambition/talent, as well as the parental financial and emotional support, I can begin to design a training program for the child. We might not be aiming for the French Open, but somewhere along that path we can strive to reach the child's full potential.

Supporting your child’s dream can be accomplished by providing challenging but attainable goals. High performance training takes a lot of effort and commitment. Therefore, the stepping stones provide the necessary measurements as well as rewards. From a different perspective, setting unrealistic goals for your child can be detrimental, resulting in deception and disenchantment. For example, for a 17 year old player who cannot qualify for the state championships, to attend a full time tennis academy would be futile. Ultimately, the child is bound to become frustrated and never reach their attainable potential.

3. Stages of development for high performance.
Some players are in a hurry to succeed. Telling a child that they have the "potential" to be good in five years, after they have reached puberty, when they get that big serve, and after they've developed tougher mentally, isn't satisfactory. The USTA has done extensive research on child development for high performance - The Progressive Development of a High Performance Player. The stages suggest a linear progression that utilize measurable growth in a player's development and performance. Short term goals and a reasonable progression are critical to the success of your child. Help your child understand these stages of development.

4. The Story
Here is my story, the stages of my development, and how it can relate to your child. I started playing late. I was almost 8 years old and I knew I had some catching up to do. At age 9, my father would take me out of school during my lunch break so that we could hit tennis balls. He wasn't a tennis player at the time, but he was an athlete. I had a blast. Not only did I get to spend quality time with my dad, but I also started to see some exciting improvements in my tennis game.

By age 10, I had practice every afternoon for two hours at the local club in a group setting - Monday through Saturday. I ate and changed a lot in the car. A prerequisite from my parents was that I had to complete my homework and get good grades. I had two private lessons a week and I started to compete in tournaments. The good news is my ranking was high enough in the region that the French Tennis Federation paid for my private lessons.

The USTA suggests 15-20 hours a week of training for ages 10-13. There are ways to get help. Ask your State USTA how you can get support. There are grants available. If your child can prove themselves, the USTA will be thrilled to help. For example, the South Carolina tennis patrons, USTA Southern, and the USTA Nationals offer monetary support to qualifying candidates.

My parents' athletic background, and their knowledge of high performance in other sports, helped them understand the necessity to train hard, and to train well. The concepts of periodization, injury prevention, cross training, and mental preparation were all familiar to them even if the tennis world was still foreign. Sure you can train 7 days a week, twice a day, but your body won't do it long and you won't be up to peaking at the right times. I would recommend parents researching these concepts, as they are critical in the success and longevity of their child athlete.

In the 12 and under division, I was still living in France. I was top three Nationally, and qualified to represent France in the European Championships. We traveled to Italy and played on European red clay. I was so excited and proud to wear "France" on the back of our team uniforms. I remember standing tall in front of the crowd, as each player was introduced, while listening to the National Anthem. Your child will make decisions and sacrifices to train hard and be good. Through the process he will enjoy incredible experiences.

In the 14 and under, I was accepted in the main draw of the World Championships called "les Petits As." I made the round of 16. Michael Chang had won the year before, and Rafael Nadal won in 2000. The Champions you see on television develop through a long process. By the time your child is a teenager, if they inspire to become a professional tennis player, a top National Ranking and International Competitions seem to be the standard. Try to keep your child balanced developing both academics and athletics. That will take a lot of pressure off your child for his tennis career, and will help him succeed. My story for this tournament is that even though I had an A in math, my mother said she would send me to the tournament and let me miss a week of school should I accept to go to Math camp during spring break.

At age 14, the French Tennis Federation invited me to train in Paris for two years at INSEP, the National Training center for athletes of all sports. Training included two, two hour blocks of tennis practices and 1 hour of fitness daily - Monday through Thursday - and two or three tournaments a month on weekends. A weekend off otherwise. Former INSEP Athlete were Yannick Noah, Guy Forget, Amelie Mauresmo, and many more.

That's the amount of training, quality of training, fitness, and tournament play high performance juniors experience. When a 14 year old comes to me and says, "I'm sorry I'm going to miss practice today because I have band practice," I realize our priorities differ. High performance training is a commitment. The above training methods have shown results for generations. Deviate from these practices, and you're innovating. Granted I have nothing against band practice. This just requires me to adjust my long term goal for that child. I'm very happy with a different objective as long as the child/parent and coach's long term goal coincide.

The Qualifications of the Orange Bowl and the French Open Juniors were part of my experiences, and at age 16 right after 11th grade, I went on the pro tour. My parents, one city employee and the other a school principal, made another one of the multiple family financial decisions based on my personal commitment to success. It paid off, that first summer. I qualified in 3 main draws, even made the finals in a 10,000, and ended up with my first world ranking of 509. I then made the decision to home school in 12th grade so I could continue with my travels. I had my best wins against a girl ranked 98 in the world, and another ranked 115 WTA. I was fortunate to play professional team tennis with Amelie Mauresmo, and learned a lot about technical efficiency and how to enjoy traveling.

Later on, I enjoyed going to college and then graduate school. I applied my work ethic and time management skills to my Ph.D studies, and to the opening my own tennis club at Brookstone Meadows in Anderson, SC.

I believe wholeheartedly that I don't just teach the sport of tennis, I teach children who play tennis. My true passion is developing the whole child using tennis as the vehicle, which encompasses the mental, emotional, physical, and psychological developmental components. My goal as a club owner and high performance coach is to support/guide children as they develop into successful young adults, both on and off the tennis court.

The trend through these childhood experiences is that I made lots of decisions. You don't see a lot of pressure coming from my parents. People used to ask them: "Don't you think you are pushing Sophie too hard?" They would answer, "We're not pushing her. We're just trying to keep up!" I'm not telling you anything new, if I reveal that the decision needs to come from the child. Parents can want it for the child, but they can't will it to happen.

The familial support is critical. The professional environment, with people who care and have the knowledge, is essential. As you try to launch yourself on this journey, no matter how high your child can reach, surround yourself with a team of professionals. Utilize the resources, the USTA, the USPTA and PTR, former players, ask questions, talk to teenagers, and see how they handled playing a pusher when they were playing in the 10 and under. They have been there.

Set some reasonable goals. I showed you the path I took at the international level. At the local, State, and Regional level it's just the same. Start with Junior Team Tennis, Challenger tournaments, level 3 local tournaments, include the state championships, travel to regional opens, and later National tournaments. International Tennis Federation tournaments (ITFs) are available in America.

Sure, there are the prodigies. Martina Hingis won the World 14 and under Junior Championships at age 11. Maria Sharapova and Boris Becker both won Wimbledon at age 17. That's just incredible and we salute them. The path to greatness has been written. Federations across the globe compete for the next child super star.

We've given you some stepping stones:

1. Let the child dream
2. Answering the dream
3. Stages of development
4. The story.

It's my hope that you are ready to take on your child's journey. Remember our definition of success, and it differs for each child. Consider the benefits, experiences, and life long learning that can be gained through high performance training specifically in tennis. Start with a reasonable goal, see the big picture and the long term emphasis, build the support team, enjoy the process, give it time to mature, spend time with your child, and watch them grow on and off the court.

Biography: Dr. Sophie Woorons-Johnston earned her PhD in Sport Pedagogy from the University of Georgia. All-American for Clemson University and Former World-Ranked WTA player, Sophie now owns and manages the Brookstone Meadows Tennis Club in Anderson, South Carolina. She is a USTA Recreational Coach Workshop National Trainer and a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team.

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