Global Organisation of Distinction Award: Colombian Tennis Federation
The Federación Colombiana de Tenis (Colombian Tennis Federation) has been honoured by the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF) with the 2022 Global Organisation of Distinction Award.
The Global Organisation of Distinction Award is an accolade which is presented annually and recognises a tennis organisation, association, federation or facility that has demonstrated a successful track record of distinguished service and contribution towards the growth of the game.
The 2022 award was presented on behalf of the ITHF by Hall of Famer Mark Woodforde at the ITF’s Conference and AGM.
“The Colombian Tennis Federation is among the best of the best in consistent development within our sport,” said Todd Martin, CEO of the ITHF.
“Colombia’s tennis traditions are steadfast thanks to its national federation’s commitment to grassroots tennis through establishing professional excellence in the sport.
“The Federation has built a strong foundation on which generations of players have benefitted and will continue to thrive.”
Selected by a committee of ITF and ITHF representatives, the Colombian Tennis Federation has dedicated itself to developing tennis at all levels – from juniors through to the professional ranks.
“This is a great achievement of Colombian Tennis,” said Colombian Tennis Federation President David Samudio Gomez.
“I would like to thank the ITF and the International Tennis Hall of Fame, COSAT (South America Tennis Confederation), and the federation’s executive committee for their support.
“Especially, I’d like to thank the administrative team of the federation´s training and development team, who together with the leagues have obtained this prestigious award.”
The Colombian Tennis Federation is committed to introducing tennis at a young age through initiatives such as its Tennis in the Schools programme. As a result, Colombia is home to a thriving ITF juniors programme, hosts several international juniors events and sits fourth in the world for number of coaches registered on the ITF Academy.
The Federation annually hosts South America’s only WTA tournament, the Copa Colsanitas, at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento, the nation’s National Tennis Centre in Bogotá. In 2020, the state-of-the-art facility was awarded ITF Silver Level status.
The Federation has also consistently developed top professional players in both the men’s and women’s game. On the men’s side, Colombia is home to the former world No. 1 doubles team of Juan Cabal and Robert Farah, winners of Grand Slam doubles titles at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2019.
The US Open girls’ singles champion that same year, Camila Osorio, has risen as high as No. 33 in the WTA rankings in her professional career, and won her first WTA title at the Copa Colsanitas in 2021.