There will be a moment of history at next month’s ITF Masters World Individual Championships when Australia’s Henry Young, who turns 100 today, takes to the court in Capdepera, Mallorca.

As he steps out to showcase his enduring skills on the global stage, Young will become the oldest player and the first aged 100 to compete on the ITF World Tennis Masters Tour.

It will also reinforce his status as the oldest competitive tennis player on the planet, being six months older than Ukraine’s Leonid Stanislavskyi – another remarkable individual who is as devoted to tennis now as he ever has been.

Young was born in 1923. For context, this was five years after the end of World War I and six years before the Great Depression, while the Spanish Civil War was more than a decade away and World War II would not start for another 16 years.

Astonishingly, he is set to feature in singles, doubles and mixed doubles in the 90 and over age category at the 2023 ITF Masters Tour World Individual Championships, which take place from 14-21 October. It is quite remarkable. 

“I am still here, and I hope I have got another few years in me,” said Young. “What else am I going to do, just vegetate and rot away? I want to enjoy myself and I love tennis, that’s why I play.

“I love life and life is for living. So many people give it up when they shouldn’t. It bugs me when people have something like tennis elbow and give the game up. I am a walking advertisement for the medical profession. 

“In a few weeks I will play the ITF World Championships and I am very much looking forward to that. I love the competitive spirit of tennis – I have been competitive all my life and that is what I love about the sport.

“The thought of getting to Mallorca is wonderful, and I am looking forward to maybe playing there in a 95 and over category in the coming years.”

It will be quite the return to ITF competition for Young, who has not featured on the ITF Masters Tour since November 2019, while the last time he competed on the Tour outside of Australia was back in 2012.

That is not to say that Young has been inactive – far from it. He still plays up to four times a week in his hometown of Adelaide, and he is afforded legendary status within his tennis-playing circles.

This became a global billing at January’s Australian Open when he was joined on Rod Laver Arena by fellow nonagenarian Stanislavskyi for a clash dubbed the ‘Battle of the Centurions’.

The duo sparred with Frances Tiafoe of the United States and Germany’s Alexander Zverev as vital funds were raised for the Tennis Plays for Peace initiative, which continues to support humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion.  

Asked about the secret to his longevity, Young joked: “Wholesome thoughts and no fast women, which rules out most of my friends” before proceeding to outline how tennis became such a mainstay of his life.

“I didn’t have time for it when I was working – I used to play perhaps half a dozen times a year,” he said. “But when I retired, I was driving along Memorial Drive and saw a billboard which said, ‘good players wanted’. In I went and that is when it all started.”

Young’s life has been truly extraordinary. As well as being a fighter pilot during World War II, he has also worked as a deer shooter and farmer, while he is also an inventor, having helped create the sheep crutching machine.

In the true spirit of age being no barrier, he is currently working on another invention, something which he claims will “provide cheaper electricity and fix climate change”, although for now his lips are sealed.

“I have to convince people yet that it works,” he added. “Every time people say it won’t work, I make it a little bit better and I think I have got it this time. But until I get my provisional patent, I can’t say too much about it.”

Having already received a congratulatory message from King Charles III, Young inevitably celebrated his big day by playing tennis before joining his son, Michael, and other family members for a well-deserved celebration.

“I did play this morning and, what is more, we won and it is always nice to win,” he said. “We are having a quiet dinner tonight but there is a big thing tomorrow at one of my tennis clubs. They are pulling out all the stops. I love the respect you get with age.”

Once the birthday celebrations subside, a return to World Championships action beckons. The ITF Masters Tour World Championships are showpiece events and the pinnacle of competition on the ITF Masters Tour, providing competitive opportunities for players in the 30 and over to 90 and over age categories.

The latest World Championships in Mallorca will see players aged 65 and over through to 90 and over battle for honours, with the Team Championships taking place the week before the Individual Championships.

The appearance of Young at the World Championships at the age of 100 is testament to tennis truly being a competitive sport for life.

Indeed, the ITF's goal is for Masters Tennis to become the leading sport in terms of tournament participation for people aged 30 and over, while continuing to showcase the founding principles of camaraderie, community and enjoyment. Research also suggests that playing tennis can increase life expectancy.  

Henry Young encapsulates everything Masters Tennis stands for. Happy birthday, Henry. Everyone at the ITF cannot wait to see you in Mallorca.