Niland lands prestigious post

GINA NILAND, Ireland's number one women's tennis player, celebrates a return to action following foot surgery with the exciting news of her appointment to the coaching staff of the elite Millfield school in England.

The Limerick woman has just returned to the practice courts after a five-month lay-off. The 24-year-old now plans to keep in touch with the satellite tournaments during her annual 18-week leave from Millfield, with a view to improving on her WTA ranking.

Tennis facilities at the English school, where annual full-board fees for students are in excess of £13,000, include 18 flood-lit and indoor courts. The facility became a European branch of the Nick Bolletieri Tennis Academy last summer.

"It's an opportunity I simply had to jump at," said a delighted Niland, who expects to be fully match-fit for Ireland's Federation Cup campaign in May.

Already enjoying the facilities and the 50-metre Olympic-sized pool at Millfield is one of Ireland's top young swimmers, Lee Kelleher of Cork.

Niland, a native of Limerick and a UCD graduate, has, up to this, largely concentrated on her own tennis game, and she has been Ireland's number one player for many seasons, after having a successful junior career. She led Ireland in Federation Cup tournaments, won the Irish Close title twice, and has been a finalist in the Irish Open.

Her foot problem and the necessity of surgery denied her the chance of improving on her world ranking, which remains at 580.

She says of the lifestyle she is taking on: "The set-up will be ideal for me. I will have the best of both worlds. On the one hand, I look forward to the challenge that will present itself in coaching promising players who hope to go on to greater things, while at the same time I will have enough time off during the year to play on the satellite circuits."

. Tim Henman has won the ATP's Most Improved Player of the Year Award for 1996 after a three-man contest with American Alex O'Brien and Felix Mantilla of Spain.

He was 95th in the world rankings on January 1st, 1996, and by the end of the year had improved his ranking to 29th.

Since then the British number one has risen to a career-high 14th, but because of an inflamed elbow over the past two weeks he has slipped back to 16th. He is due to play in the Lipton tournament in Florida this weekend.