Training centre at DCU to open in April

Tennis Ireland confirmed that the National Training Centre at the Dublin City University (DCU) campus in Glasnevin is scheduled to open at the end of April.

The €1.3 million venture, funded by the Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism (€800,000) and the national governing body of Irish tennis represents a significant step forward.

Tennis Ireland are in year three of a 10-year Strategic Plan that among other things is geared towards producing Irish tennis players who can compete at a meaningful level on the world professional circuits.

The gestation period for the plan is directly attributable to research that shows it takes about 10 years for a seven to eight year- old-player to become a top prospect.

During that time about 10,000 hours on court are required, working out at about three hours per day. The construction of the National Tennis Centre and the ancillary facilities that will be available to young players is seen as a down payment on the future of the sport in this country.

Tennis Ireland had previously called upon the services of top Belgian coach Ivo Van Aken but the structures that he introduced will now be managed by Gary Cahill, the technical director of the National Training Programme, allowing Van Aken to develop others aspects in a less central role. He'll still make about half a dozen visits a year to the centre.

The decision to situate the National Training Centre on the DCU campus is an acknowledgement of the facilities available and several ancillary factors that guarantee a more rounded overall programme.

There are currently 16 young players aged between 10 and 15 in the national programme and at DCU they are able to call upon the expertise of not alone Cahill but Dr Kieran Moran (Biomechanics) and Dr Siobhán McArdle (Sports Psychologist) to fine tune the education of the young prospects.

Having made a commitment to providing resources from technical through biomechanics, nutrition and sports psychology among others, Des Allen, chief executive of Tennis Ireland, is adamant that this country will be able to develop professional tennis players who will compete successfully on the world stage.

"I think it's definitely possible. The provision of resources on and off court mean that there's no reason why we can't produce top players."

Those young boys and girls on the current national programme spend a minimum of 24 hours per week on court and because of the relative inflexibility of the school curriculum that means they have to arrive at DCU for practice early in the morning and in the evening time for five and a half days a week.

The fact that the National Training Centre is situated in Dublin means that those currently involved from outside the capital have to make provisions to reside there. This could include changing schools. From September 2005 there will be a provision for those on the national programme to take up residence in the student accommodation at DCU under strict supervision of a house master or mistress.

That decision will be made by parents who must fund their offspring's involvement and their education, wherever they are schooled on a day to day basis.

Tennis Ireland also have a verbal outline agreement with DCU for the provision of scholarships at DCU that would allow burgeoning young tennis players to spread a three-year degree course over four or five years thereby providing them with the facility to play professional tennis.

As things stand Ireland has a number of young players ranked in the top 50 in Europe at under- 14 level and this is seen as a starting point. It seems that tennis in Ireland now has a tangible focal point and that those lost to the US Collegiate scene - there is only one male player currently in the Top 100 players in the world, James Blake, who played US Collegiate tennis - won't have to travel abroad in search of a playing future.