Future tennis champ Francis Tiafoe won the Easter Bowl this weekend, a top competition for junior players. The win is his second major juniors title after winning the Orange Bowl in the winter . He will go on to compete in the junior events at the Grand Slams.
FRANCIS TIAFOE WINS EASTER BOWL
16-Year-Old Tiafoe Wins Top Junior Tournaments Back-to-Back
Francis Tiafoe, who trains at the Junior Tennis Champions Center (JTCC), the area’s world-class tennis training facility in College Park, Md., backs up his 2013 Orange Bowl win with a win at the 2014 Easter Bowl, one of the top junior tournaments in the country.
As the top seed in the event, Tiafoe beat Nathan Ponwith 7-6 (7-3), 3-6, 6-2 to win the championship. Tiafoe is the first junior since John McEnroe in 1976 to win both tournaments in the 18-and-under championships.
With this victory, Tiafoe is now ranked No. 2 in the junior world rankings. He plans to play in the junior Grand Slam events at the French Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open and defend his title at the Orange Bowl where he was the youngest-ever winner at the international tournament.
“JTCC congratulates Francis for another great win,” said Ray Benton, chief executive officer of JTCC. “This was an incredible tournament for all of our players and it is a testament to their hard work and the efforts of their coaches. We’ve had great success in helping junior players become complete players, allowing them to be successful in everything they do both on and off the court.”
In addition to Tiafoe’s win, JTCC students Evan Zhu and Caleb Chakravarthi took the Easter Bowl’s 16-and-under doubles title.
JTCC was named 2013 Facility, Organization & Developmental Program of the Year by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and trains some of the top young tennis talent in the U.S. To learn more about JTCC, please visit www.jtcc.org.
About Junior Tennis Champions Center
Junior Tennis Champions Center (JTCC), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is a world-class junior developmental training program operating at the Tennis Center at College Park, MD. Selected as the first United States Tennis Association Regional Training Center, JTCC provides a pathway for players from their introduction to the game to top-tier collegiate and professional competition. The Tennis Center at College Park, which was named the 2013 USTA Facility of the Year, is a 32-court full service club located conveniently to serve the Washington, DC metropolitan area. JTCC is committed to community outreach through its after-school and summer youth programs. The most talented and motivated youth identified from JTCC’s grassroots programs are offered scholarships to attend JTCC’s training programs.
Topics: Asics, Easter Bowl, Junior Tennis Champions Center, Nathan Ponwith, Tennis, Tiafoe, Usta
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