Warwickshire’s 14 and Under County Cup Boys Team receive President’s Award at 2021 LTA Tennis Awards
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The Warwickshire 14 and under County Cup Boys Team been crowned a national winner at the prestigious LTA Tennis Awards for its trailblazing exploits revolutionising the sport in the region.
The team raised nearly £2,600 for the NHS and Covid patients through their 170 mile virtual team run. They swallowed the disappointment of the cancellation of their County Cup Championships by running individually in their home areas, featuring in regional media and inspiring players throughout the Midlands.
They were awarded the prize by LTA President David Rawlinson at the live-streamed awards ceremony presented by LTA Head of Men’s tennis and Great Britain’s Davis Cup captain Leon Smith OBE last night.
The LTA Tennis Awards are now in their sixth year and celebrate the achievements and contributions of outstanding tennis volunteers, coaches, officials, venues and players across the country.
And they were hand-picked as one of 16 national winners recognised at the awards ceremony last week, which honoured individuals involved in tennis at grassroots, county, regional and national level.
Nominations were drawn from over 25,000 volunteers, nearly 5,000 coaches and 1,000 officials, 22,000 schools, nearly 3,000 clubs and over 9,000 LTA approved tournaments, with Leeds Community Tennis Programme recognised for their inspirational work in the Yorkshire region.
The quality and quantity of the nominations demonstrate outstanding work that has been done in tennis through the pandemic and David Rawlinson, LTA President, said: “The LTA Tennis Awards are a real celebration of the people that make our sport thrive.
“They celebrate the achievements made by outstanding volunteers, coaches, officials, venues and players, who are all vital in helping us to grow the game.
“The past year has been challenging for everyone, but to see the tremendous positive contributions the nominees have made to the sport and to their communities has been tremendously uplifting.”
National Runners Up
Peter Millar
Peter Millar, who has a learning disability, is a highly valued committee member of Wallasey Manor Tennis Club. He supports his Mum as bar secretary and volunteers his time as a Level 1 Coach. He is brilliant with children, always has a smile on his face and is even willing to undertake the more mundane tasks of emptying bins or brushing up leaves.
Stuart Silvester
During lockdown Stuart Silvester engaged the Norfolk tennis community through daily online challenges. He has embraced social media, livestreaming county matches and records live interviews with players in Norfolk on Instagram every Friday. He also organised the online AGM and Awards Ceremony which had over 2,000 views on Facebook.
LTA Presidents Award 2021 – National Shortlist
- Graham Baum from Redmarley Tennis Club in Gloucestershire
- Stuart Calow from Lincolnshire Tennis and Grantham Tennis Club
- Michelle Collins from Tennis Sussex
- Peter Coniglio and Helen Abbott from Walking Tennis
- Paul Jameson from West Surrey Tennis Club
- Mackintosh Tennis Club Coaching Team in Cardiff
- Peter Millar from Wallasey Manor Tennis Club in Cheshire
- John Ramsbottom from Yorkshire LTA
- Stuart Silvester from Norfolk LTA
- Warwickshire’s 14 and Under County Cup Boys Team
