 |
| About the Silver Fund |
| Newsletter |
| Countries |
| | Overview |
| | The Americas |
| | Euro/Africa |
| | Asia/Oceania |
| Latest News |
| Silver Fund Cup |
| | Overview |
| | Eastern Europe |
| | Asia |
| | Latin America |
| | Africa |
| Sponsors / Contributors |
| How to Get Involved |
|
|
| About the Silver Fund |
 | | Programme Partner: Cruyff Foundation |  | | Youngest participant in Bolivia |  | | Player from Sri Lanka at Invacare World Team Cup 2005 |  | | Johana Martinez from Colombia learning from Korie Homan (NED) |  | | Indonesian player at 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens |  | | Romanian player at an NEC Tour event in Hungary |  | | Learning to play in Tarija, Bolivia |
What?
Through the Wheelchair Tennis Silver Fund, the International Tennis Federation aims to establish long-lasting wheelchair tennis programmes in developing countries, providing disabled children and adults with opportunities to enjoy an active and rewarding life.
In 2002, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of wheelchair tennis the ITF introduced the Wheelchair Tennis Silver Fund, with the aim of establishing wheelchair tennis projects in countries that are otherwise not able to embrace it. The Fund is responsible for its own fundraising and the resources are spent solely on such development projects.
Where?
Through the Silver Fund the ITF has already developed successful programmes in Romania, South Africa, Sri Lanka, El Salvador, Indonesia, Colombia, Bolivia, India, Moldova, Bulgaria, Morocco, Gambia, Malaysia, Thailand, Nigeria and Tanzania. This year, the programme has been extended to include Brazil, Ecuador, Turkey and Vietnam and further plans to include the organisation of the Silver Fund Cup in four continents – Latin America, East Europe, Africa and Asia.
How?
Over a period of two years, the ITF helps each country to set up a sustainable wheelchair tennis programme. This assistance involves sending a coach to the country for a period of two to four weeks to lay the groundwork the programme. The visiting coaches work with local players and coaches in intensive training sessions, hold clinics and exhibitions, meet with the local partners (tennis federation or disabled sports association), set up development plans that are in line with local needs, visit rehabilitation centres, tennis clubs, schools and universities, talk to the media and potential sponsors, etc. The ITF also provides the countries with tennis equipment and where possible assists with identifying or setting up local wheelchair production workshops. At the end of the two-year period the programmes are expected to be self-sustainable and gradually joining in the great array of worldwide international competition opportunities, such as the tournaments on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour, the Invacare World Team Cup and the Paralympic Games.
Impact
The countries that have already passed through the initial two-year period are now boasting successful wheelchair tennis programmes run locally, which are also linked into the international network. South Africa, for example, has not only participated in the Invacare World Tean Cup, in the Cruyff Foundation International Junior Camp in Europe or the Paralympic Games in Athens 2004, but it has also hosted two international competitions.
Players in Sri Lanka have also had the opportunity to participate in NEC Tour events, Invacare World Team Cups and the Athens Paralympic Games. Their country is also exploring regional cooperation opportunities with India, creating an important base for training and competition ahead of the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing. To read more about each of the Silver Fund countries, please click on the Countries link in the navigation menu on the left.
Through this project the ITF would like to promote a positive image of people with a disability, change the way they are perceived in society and show that disabled athletes can participate in high level sport and take a role in the social and economical life of the community. In many developing nations the opportunities for active community involvement available to wheelchair users are limited, due not only to the lack of accessible infrastructure and other physical barriers but also to rigid and discouraging social attitudes.
Participating in sports, in particular in wheelchair tennis, increases self-belief and also provides people with a disability with the means and know-how for independent living and a more affirmative attitude towards their community and existence in general. Beyond its athletic and educational value, the beauty of wheelchair tennis is that it is entirely compatible with able-bodied tennis and thus it is an ideal approach for integrating wheelchair players into the mainstream lives of their local communities and society.
^ Back to Top
|
|
|
|
