The IMG Future Stars event at the Tatoï Club in Athens, Greece was back for its third edition. Many of the world’s top 12&U players were invited to play at this exclusive venue, an experience encompassing a smorgasbord of events and activities beyond the tennis tournament.
Estonia’s Elizaveta Anikina, of the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy, was the girls’ finalist falling to Ketong Guo (CHN) in the final in three tough sets, with the Chinese player taking the title 6-4 4-6 6-4. Congratulations are also in order for another Mouratoglou player Yanru Li (CHN) who won the boys’ title by defeating Daniel Gardality (USA) 6-1 6-4 in the final.
Many other European players fared well, with Simona Novakova (SVK), Korana Barisic (CRO), Jonas Waelti (SUI) and Vakhlin Arkadii all making the semifinals. As it was an invitational event and not officially a Junior Tour event, no points are awarded on the Tennis Europe rankings. It is encouraging nonetheless to witness European youngsters performing at such a high level at an international event of this calibre.
The 2024 edition of the event has now come to another successful end and Tennis Europe was on site this week to provide a first taste of the Junior School to many of the world's best 12 & Under players that were in attendance. Tennis Europe’s new Coaching video was discussed as well as the topics of Parents and The Tennis Family.
Also on hand at the start of the event were Holger Rune and Francisco Cerundolo who fielded questions from the young players in a press conference. Rune then delighted fans by playing an exhibition against some local talents and stuck around to sign plenty of autographs for the children.
Players were also treated to various activities including a workshop with Patrick Mouratoglou and Mike James; a WTA/ATP Tour day; an off-court masterclass with Sven Groeneveld and the Head of IMG Tennis Max Eisenbud; and a workshop on the important topic of Mental Health. The participants were also spoiled for entertainment: the Greek night festivities gave them a taste of the local culture and they particularly enjoyed a guided tour of the Acropolis, along with all the extra tennis workshops and training sessions:
As mentioned, the event takes place at the renowned Tatoï Club, the home club of Greek star Maria Sakkari. By virtue of their results in Athens, the winners of the event have earned a spot at the 14&U Eddie Herr International Junior Championship to be held at the IMG Academy in Florida.
We also look forward to seeing many of these players at the Carlos Moya 12&U festival, our season ending event in Mallorca, now in its fourth year. The Tennis Europe event invites the top-performing 12 & Under European players to the season-ending championships for this age group.
For more information, go to the IMG Future Stars website.
For more about the Tennis Europe Junior Tour and the Carlos Moya 12&U Festival, click here.