The long bit about Wheelchair Tennis
Advantage is a high-performance club for senior players which was founded by Garreth Greene in September 2009. Advantage aims to facilitate the progression and development of wheelchair tennis in Ireland. The club encourages wheelchair users with a high level of mobility to get involved in wheelchair tennis and train and compete at an elite level - or a level of their choice. Advantage Wheelchair Tennis is a club run under the umbrella of Irish Wheelchair Association - Sport.
If you're not already aware, there is only one main difference between wheelchair tennis and able-bodied tenns - this being the ball can bounce twice. Apart from this simple fact, there is no difference!
Wheelchair tennis was introduced by Brad Parks in 1976 and since then it has become one of the fastest growing wheelchair sports in the world thanks to it's easy integration with the able-bodied game.
Ireland is not historically known as a tennis nation, this being also true with wheelchair tennis. This is not to say Ireland doesn't have great players, but more that we have not been largely recognised on an international large scale (yet!). However Wheelchair tennis in Ireland is slowly becoming more and more popular as people realise the benefits of the game and the enjoyment factor. It keeps you fit, is a relatively low-risk injury sport compared to wheelchair basketball or rugby. It can improve your balance, hand-to-eye-coordination, aerobic fitness, flexibility and most of all is fun to play - and competitive!
One of the major benefits of the game is the ability to play with able-bodied or wheelchair users alike which means training or just playing for fun can be done anywhere with a court.
Most wheelchair players use a specifically constructed wheelchair suited to the sport but you can play in an everyday chair easily. Wheelchair tennis is all about movement, positioning, technique, fitness, mental toughness and control. A player may not have all of these talents naturally, but playing and training can reveal other skills that can counter these attributes in an opponent such as more precise placement, smarter game-play, tougher tactical psychology and so on.
Wheelchair tennis worldwide is a huge sport and has become very much like able-bodied tennis in respect of prize money although not quite getting the same exposure or funding. The total prize money for the US Open in 2009 for wheelchair participants was $100,000 from an annual fund of $1.3m for the Wheelchair Tour.
Wheelchair tennis is definitely a sport to watch.
