Councillors try out limited vision tennis at Energise

Sheena Jackson (Westfield) and Stephen Fenton (Dringhouses) put on special glasses to demonstrate the impact visual impairment has for anyone playing sport.

The event took place at Energise at the weekend.

Stephen wore glasses that when playing gave him the experience of someone who has to live with “tunnel vision”.

The glasses Sheena wore completely blurred her vision and made things all fuzzy. Sheena said they “made you feel somewhat nauseus after a while when hitting a tennis ball”.

The ball that was used was a sponge ball which is used in short tennis and inside the ball was another ball the size of a golf ball with ball bearing inside which people with visual impairment would be able to hear when the ball was approaching them to enable them to make contact with it.

The Councillors said that the session was an interesting one and everyone who participated enjoyed that activities along with the glorious sunshine.

The local ward Councillors support the activities being put on at Energise. The weekend before they went along to see what coaching/drills/activities the new tennis section at Energise has to offer.

New tennis league open to all

Tennis players in York have a smashing new opportunity to play friendly, competitive matches organised by the group Local Tennis Leagues in partnership with City of York Council.

The competition invites adult players of all standards to pick up their racquets and sign up to a local singles league. Participants are organised into groups and then liaise with their opponent to arrange a mutually convenient time to play, at a court in the city to suit them both. Each round runs for eight weeks and round one launches on Thursday 9 July during Wimbledon 2015.

The local league aims to open up competitive tennis to everyone, whether or not they are members of a club. It will make it easier to compete on public courts by matching interested partners of similar standards and will be a way of meeting new people through sport. The initiative is one of many opportunities across the city to encourage residents to play sport more often and exercise for the recommended 150 minutes a week.  

Top spin

Top spin

Cllr Nigel Ayre, Executive Member for Culture, Leisure and Tourism said: “Anyone who is inspired by Wimbledon will love this opportunity to play competitively against new opponents in the city. Sporting opportunities such as this are an enjoyable way to build friendships as well as keeping fit.”

The league gives a can of free tennis balls to every player who completes three matches by the half way point and there are prizes for the winners of each group. It is affiliated to the sport’s governing body, the Lawn Tennis Association.

To enter the league visit www.localtennisleagues.com/york and register by Monday 6 July. The entry fee is £15 and further information is available from Local Tennis Leagues members on 07503 281732 or email yorktennisleague@gmail.com