Gold’s Gym Douglasville, GA Tennis Player wins International Tournament
Sunday, September 30th, 2007Mathew Johnson, a member of the Gold’s Gym Junior Tennis Academy, represented the United States at the 2007 Friendship Games last July in Haarlem, Amsterdam sponsored by the People to People Ambassadors Organization. Competitors from the U.S., England, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and a host of other countries were sponsored by their respective countries to compete in an Olympic style forum in Amsterdam. The U.S. divided its tennis players into 28 groups, each group having 5 members. Singles and doubles tournaments involved winning as many games as a player could in 30 minutes. They also had to strategically determine when or if to take water-rest breaks. The tennis player from each group with the most games won within his or her group advanced to the singles tournament. Doubles teams were created based on the coach’s recommendations. Both singles and doubles tournaments involved single elimination and did not include consolation play.
During the ten-day program, Mat trained the first four days gaining experience on various courts and getting use the 30 minute rapid-style of play. In his singles matches, Mathew won 3 out of 4 matches, winning a total of 20 games. He won matches against players hailing from the Netherlands and the U.S, only losing to an 18-year old American tennis player. While Mathew won 20 games, he fell 10 games short of advancing to the singles tournament. The 18-year-old contender in his group advanced to the singles tournament.
During his doubles match, Mat and his partner, Tyler Allen, won 6-5 against the American doubles team. However, they lost to the Belgium team (4-6) in the quarterfinals. The knowledge Mathew gained participating in the Friendship Games was a rewarding experience. When asked about his trip Johnson said, “The training I have gained through Gold’s Gym Junior Tennis Academy has been a great asset in my first international competition.”
Learn more about the Gold’s Gym Tennis Academy