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Javier and I were sitting down
at a Starbucks near the beach, talking about his latest article
posted on LinkedIn, titled 'Where are my countrymen, USTA?' The gist
of his article is the lack of Americans on college teams and
the fact that the NCAA finals were broadcast on the Tennis Channel.
Personally, I'm not sure why
the USTA is putting their eggs into the college tennis basket
right now. Who sold whom the Brooklyn Bridge here is the big
question. Are they seriously hoping college tennis will become
as popular as college football? Who will be watching those games?
According to Javier, only the parents of all those foreign players.
And why is the Tennis Channel putting money into broadcasting
it? Or is the USTA, with their unlimited funds and their unbridled
need to spend millions in the wrong areas, funding it?
Javier's writing style may be
offputting to some people, but when you sit across from him and
listen to his vision, you know you have a charismatic leader
in front of you.
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CHANGE
OUR COMMUNITY FROM A ME
SOCIETY
TO A WE
SOCIETY |
Javier says, "The USTA model
is not working. Hundreds of millions of dollars spent and no
star player because you can't make a star. Ask the Player Development
department."
Instead of trying to create stars,
he suggests we should create an environment that produces LEADERS.
"Where becoming a star is not important but becoming a good
player and a community leader is."
Javier's vision is the creation
of a new community, a 'Tennis Republic' where business leaders
speak to the kids and where kids teach other kids. (Can you hear
him, Vic Braden? You were working with kids teaching kids since
the 1990's.)
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THE HIGH SCHOOL IS THE FUTURE |
Javier laments that the USTA
"is only interested in the entertainment aspect of tennis
and in preserving their fiefdom. It's an outdated model, not
able to grow tennis." he emphasizes the huge age gap and
the fact that few young players are in the pipeline. "Kids
leave in troves. The overwhelming majority of kids leave after
playing just a few tournaments."
Javier suggests concentrating
efforts and funds in high school tennis. "Imagine what could
have been achieved if the $200 Million spent in Player development
in the past decade was spent in high schools."
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BUILD A
NEW
TENNIS REPUBLIC FROM
THE BOTTOM UP |
"Why can pickleball grow
and not tennis?" A simple question demonstrating how Javier
thinks. "We will create Tennis republic Ambassadors and
make the sport affordable again. Build it from the bottom up,
not from the top down." He counts on local businesses supporting
Tennis Republic activities because "we are helping kids
and the new organization will create and provide leaders for
them."
Javier has a message for tennis
professionals. "If you're hosting a bunch of rich kids for
summer camp, all the power to you. But you're not making a dent.
The high school is the future."
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WHERE HAVE
ALL THE AMERICAN
TENNIS TOURNAMENTS
GONE? |
May 10 Javier wrote an article
titled "The disappearing interest for tennis. Thank you,
USTA" in which also posted an article that appeared
in the New York Times April 19. "Where Have All the American Tennis Tournaments
Gone?" by Adam Zagoria.
Zagoria writes, "American
tennis fans used to have more options. In 1990, 24 of 55 WTA
events were in the United States. But with the sale of the Connecticut
Open in New Haven this year, only seven of 55 WTA events currently
on the 2019 calendar are on American soil. Five of those seven
are joint events with men, including the U.S. Open, Indian Wells
and Miami. On the men’s side, 16 of 77 worldwide ATP events
in 1990 took place in the United States. This year, 11 of 63
will be."
I find this article, including
statements by Anne Worcester, quite insightful. the globalization
of tennis is happening and no one is interested in bringing back
some of the many tournaments that went to Asia. While the USTA
is pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the most unsuccessful
player development program in the western hemisphere, the organization's
US Open seems to be profiting from the lack of other tennis tournaments,
especially on the East Coast.
Javier lays the blame for disappearing
interest in U.S. tennis squarely on the USTA leadership and Board.
"The USTA board and leadership have to RESIGN, they represent
the past, the failure and the complete lack of understanding
of how to grow the game, and above all, they are the ones responsible
for stealing the game for the future generations."
KEEP DISRUPTING, JAVIER!
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