Ada Kumru was the star of the ITF/Tennis Europe 14 & Under Development Championships, wrapping up four titles in two weeks on home soil in Antalya, Turkey.
The special event saw players from 10 Tier 1 Development Eligibility countries invited to train together and compete in back-to-back Category 2 Junior Tour tournaments.
Kumru beat compatriot Irem Kurt in both girls’ singles finals and the pair combined to add the doubles titles both weeks. Amar Huseinovkj & Aleksandar Trifunovski of North Macedonia went unbeaten in the boys’ doubles events, while the boys’ singles produced different finalists each time: Kerem Yilmaz (TUR) beat Mikayel Avensyan (ARM) for the first title, while Ivan Ivanov (BUL) claimed the title in week two over Huseinovikj.
Hosted by the Turkish Tennis Federation for a tenth consecutive year, the Development Championships were held alongside a 12 & Under training camp. Almost 70 players – from Albania, Armenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Turkey - travelled to Antalya, with main expenses paid by the European Assistance Budget.
The young athletes were joined by 27 coaches, 10 of whom are female, participating through an equal opportunity programme introduced by ITF & Tennis Europe to cover the expenses of an additional female coach.
A special Tennis Europe Junior School class was also held on-site, where players learned about the importance of nutrition and proper warm-up routines from Tennis Europe Development Committee Chair Cem Tinaz, who was on hand throughout the event. Mr. Tinaz said, “The Development Championships is a great tournament, and we are honoured that Turkey has been able to host it for the last ten years. Over the past few days it has been a pleasure to observe how the players, teams and coaches have benefitted from the event, working together, making connections and always observing the health and safety restrictions. I look forward to following their progress in the future.”
Many future great players gained some of their earliest international tournament playing experience by competing at the Development Championships. Former competitors include Simona Halep, Jelena Ostapenko, Grigor Dimitrov and Marcos Baghdatis.
Further Information
Results: Week 1 | Week 2
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