Lithuania's National Training Centre granted Silver Level status
Lithuania has the potential to make a significant impact upon the tennis world. That is the view of Ramunas Grusas, the President of the Lithuanian Tennis Union, after their National Training Centre (NTC) was awarded Silver Level status by the ITF.
Luca Santilli, the ITF’s Executive Director of Tennis Development, was in Vilnius to unveil and present the plaque which grants the facility certified recognition and confirms the SEB Arena as a premier tennis venue.
“To sum it up, the ITF confirmed that our NTC has all the necessary conditions for the development of top-level tennis players,” Grusas tells itftennis.com.
“I think this is a very important milestone for Lithuanian tennis and one that will bring us new victories on the world's biggest tennis courts, as well as the growth of the sport's popularity in the country.”
This recognition allows the Lithuanian Tennis Union to use the ITF logo as a sign of quality control for their NTC, with the facility able to bear the hallmark for the next four years.
It is hoped that the accrediting of the NTC will contribute to the continued elevation of standards across the board and help Lithuanian tennis prosper and scale new heights in the months and years ahead.
“It is impressive to see the good work done by the Lithuanian Tennis Union across the development areas of participation, education, performance, events and facility,” said Santilli.
“Having their National Tennis Centre recognised by the ITF at Silver Level is a deserved achievement, which hopefully will bring more recognition and attention from public authorities and sponsors to advance tennis in the country.”
In 2018, the ITF and several leading tennis nations established the criteria and minimum standards for NTCs to ensure quality standards worldwide. ITF recognition is based on a series of criteria and minimum standards at Gold, Silver, Bronze and White levels.
Applicant nations are required to provide documentary evidence and have their NTC undergo an inspection to show that systems and procedures are in place in five key areas – facilities and equipment, management, coaching team, sports science and medicine, and player programmes.
For those developing nations who aspire to achieve such recognition, the ITF offers help in the form of Facility Grants, visits from Development Officers and ITF experts, and the provision of ITF-approved materials on the running of an NTC and effective programmes.