Total has renewed its sponsorship of grass roots tennis in Northamptonshire for another year. Under its partnership agreement with Northamptonshire Lawn Tennis Association (NLTA), Total provides funding to support junior county training and inter-county competition, and to support the running and prizes of the junior county closed tournament.
“At Total, helping others, supporting wellbeing, inclusivity and personal development are important to us, and our involvement with NLTA helps us to extend this locally,” said Aidan Groom, Total's Managing Director.
“The wellbeing benefits of regular activity are widely understood and we’re great believers in providing people, of all backgrounds, with the support they need to develop their potential. As a Northants business, it’s good to be able to make a contribution to the local community,” said Aidan.
“Total's sponsorship is a huge help to us in the work we're doing,” said Craig Haworth, Northants LTA Councillor and manager of Corby Tennis Centre. “The support from Total helps us in so many different ways, funding everything from balls and court use, to travel, accommodation, and coaching. This has enabled us to grow participation at a County level quite significantly.”
NLTA provides regular group coaching sessions, which get participants ready to take part in competitions representing the county – with more than 80 players involved in this county-level training. The training starts with an eight-and-under age group, and goes up to 18-year-olds.
Craig said, “The tennis centre here in Corby was built in the early 90s, and has really helped to broaden participation, with a noticeable increase in the last three or four years – helping us increase the diversity of tennis players in Northants.”
One example of a local success story is Joe Tyler, from Corby. Craig explained, “Joe has done everything through the county set-up since the age of nine, and is now playing his tennis in the US, at San Diego State – in fact, he’s one of quite a large number of our kids who have gone on to get scholarships to American universities.”
Craig added: “Joe rose as high as number two in the UK’s under-fourteen rankings, and is looking to play tennis full-time when he finishes university this year.”
Aidan concluded: “As a tennis fan myself, I’m delighted that Total can make a difference to grassroots sport in our local area.”