Singapore tennis gets boost from partnership with Thailand’s Impact Tennis Academy

SINGAPORE – Thailand-based Impact Tennis Academy (ITA) will partner Singapore’s Mike Tennis Academy and former Singapore player Isaac Ong to help develop and mentor young players here.

According to the academy’s press statement on Monday, the collaboration is an opportunity for Singapore junior players who aspire to achieve success on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and Asian Tennis Federation circuits, and to improve their chances in the Direct School Admissions (DSA) programme.

It also provides a pathway for those who are trying to secure overseas scholarships.

The pilot tie-up will kick off with a camp from Nov 10 to 16 at the Tanglin Academy in Turf City led by ITA director Stephen Koon and coach Justin Russ.

It is open to all competitive players in Singapore and coaches are also encouraged to join.

Following that, ITA’s team, including former Taiwanese professional Lu Yen-hsun, will visit Singapore every quarter to continue working with the players.

Local participants will also be able to travel to ITA’s base in Nonthaburi, Thailand, for training and tournaments.

Koon, who has worked with top 100 players like South African duo Kevin Anderson and Lloyd Harris, as well as Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka, said: “My team is just trying to give dedicated junior players with dreams from Singapore a chance to receive continued international knowledge and guidance while staying in Singapore, and work with two local coaches of high character.”

Russ was previously head of strength and conditioning at IMG Academy and has worked with ATP and WTA players Kei Nishikori and Ekaterina Makarova.

Mike Ho, who runs the Mike Tennis Academy and has over a decade of coaching experience, specialises in training competitive junior players aiming for DSA.

Ong, who hit a career-high junior ranking of No. 257 in 2015 and participated at the SEA Games and Davis Cup, will also add his wealth of experience.

Koon added: “Both Mike and Isaac have the willingness to continue to grow and learn, as well as shown the ability to get results and truly care about every single player of theirs.

“My goal is to use my resources and guidance to help both coaches and players, and work together throughout the year.”