By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
New York City is certainly seen as one of the world’s “Tennis Hotspots” considering it is the epicenter of American tennis at the end of each summer when it hosts the U.S. Open.
However, the Big Apple has an even better reputation as a 12-month-a-year hub for tennis with the increased success and attention being paid to the John McEnroe Tennis Academy.
Located on Randall’s Island, just in the shadow of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, the John McEnroe Tennis Academy features 20 courts – 10 hard and 10 green clay all available for 12-months a year – at the $19 million, 160,000-square foot Sportime Randall’s Island tennis complex. The facility also features a training and fitness center, locker rooms with steam, sauna and treatment areas, a café featuring healthy food and classrooms, meeting and special event facilities.
“We provide opportunity for kids who live in this area,” said McEnroe, who grew up in Douglaston, Queens, New York. “Plenty of kids can go to Florida or where ever they chose to go and live and breath it if that is what the parents think that’s what best for them. Me personally, I don’t I think I would have succeeded had I been forced to do that.”
Besides McEnroe, the world-class coaching staff also features McEnroe’s long-time doubles partner Peter Fleming and former ATP and WTA top 75 professional players Fritz Buehning, Hana Sromova and Martina Sucha.
Founded in September in 2010 and has already been seen as a developing ground for promising American talents – Jamie Loeb and Noah Rubin. Loeb is currently one of the top women players on college tennis at the University of North Carolina. Rubin is one of the top male prospects in the United States.
“It’s been a great experience to be with all of these unbelievable coaches and players and have been fortunate to have this staff,” said Rubin. “The people here are very kind and they are always supportive. They have everything you need in order to get what you want in life as a tennis player.”
McEnroe’s passion and belief is that great players can be developed in urban settings, while still having the opportunity to live at home, pursue their educational goals, and participate in a variety of sports and extracurricular activities. Through community outreach, the Academy works to recruit the most talented and the most highly motivated young athletes in the New York City Metropolitan area.
In addition to the location at Randall’s Island, the John McEnroe Tennis Academy also has satellite locales at SPORTIME locations in Westchester and on Long Island: SPORTIME Lake Isle, a beautiful, 8-court, state-of-the art year-round facility in Eastchester, New York in lower Westchester; and SPORTIME Bethpage in central Long Island, a 6-court indoor facility that has long been SPORTIME’s high performance training mecca.
To find out more about the programs and services at the JMTA, please contact the club nearest you:
JMTA, NYC – 212/427-6150, falvarado@sportimeny.com
JMTA, Long Island – 516/933-8500, mkossoff@sportimeny.com
JMTA, Westchester – 914/777-5151, fritz@sportimeny.com
