Team Invictus and Team Endeavour compete in Invictus Games Wheelchair Tennis competition at Loughborough University
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Last year the LTA and the Invictus Games Foundation joined forces to provide wheelchair tennis taster sessions for wounded injured and sick serving or veterans, with 10 athletes from those taster sessions competing at Loughborough University over the weekend.
Taster days were held in Glasgow, Oxford, Wirral and Loughborough across August, September and October in 2021 as an opportunity to showcase wheelchair tennis as a great foundation for recovery, be it for physical or psychological injuries, to support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding and respect for wounded, injured and sick armed forces personnel.
Following the taster sessions, players from each location were selected to participate in a two-day tournament at Loughborough across 8 and 9 January, where they competed to become the Invictus Champions for 2021.
10 athletes were split into two teams, Team Endeavour and Team Invictus, with five athletes on each team. Each match equated to points which were tallied up for an overall team total. Points were also available to win through a number of team challenges. This included sprint tests, fan drills, and Invictus values: Support, Dedication, Respect, Courage and expanded capabilities.
Matches across the weekend were played in a fantastic spirit and the athletes all embodied the core Invictus values.
Tony Quinn and Fay Dutfield Horton were in fine form, winning all of the matches they played across singles and Doubles for Team Endeavour. Morgan Dally and David Denholm battled hard for Team Invictus across the two days, securing some hard-fought wins.
Following the conclusion of Saturday’s competition Team Endeavour held a narrow 10-5 lead, and on Sunday they were not to be denied as they went on to gain an extra 43 points to win the competition. The final result was Team Endeavour (53) - Team Invictus (28).
Matthew Grover, Wheelchair Talent Pathway Manager said: “I would like to congratulate all 10 athletes for providing a highly competitive and exciting two days of wheelchair tennis.
“Matches across the weekend were played in a fantastic spirit and the athletes all embodied the core Invictus values.
“Congratulations to Team Endeavour on winning the Invictus Games and to Team Invictus for providing great competition.”
Alex Krol, retired Royal Marine and captain of Team Invictus said:
"It was a pleasure to see all the athletes compete this weekend. To know that their journeys started off last year at one of the 4 intro days was a humbling feeling. They have all developed so much, not just only on court but personally too. Where they go from here is down to them. Hopefully they now feel inspired to continue their journey and apply for the next Invictus Games but either way I hope to see them all back on court one day soon."
Team Endeavour:
- Coach – Kevin Drake
- Fay Dutfield Horton, Peter Hobson, Tony Quinn, David Dent, Sabrina Sheikh
Team Invictus
- Coach – Alex Krol
- Lee Aitchison, David Denholm, Morgan Dally, Graham Latham, Wendy King
Wheelchair tennis is part of the LTA’s Open Court programme, which is one of the biggest disability-specific sports development programmes in the country. The programme is delivered at a local level made up of a collaboration of key partners actively promoting and delivering opportunities for disables people to get involved in tennis through a customer focused approach. To find out more about the Open Court programme and wheelchair tennis, please click here.
