10 May 2017 | Tennis Australia

Tennis Australia will launch the ANZ Tennis Hot Shots Racquet Roadshow this week to celebrate a record 80,000 racquets delivered to primary school students across the country.

Tennis Australia’s School Partnership Program encourages children to pick up a racquet and learn tennis as part of their health and physical education curriculum.

ANZ’s support of the initiative has ensured primary school students from registered schools receive a brand new racquet, with tens of thousands involved since January 2015.

Twenty-two time Grand Slam champion Todd Woodbridge, Australian Fed Cup captain and ANZ Tennis Hot Shots ambassador Alicia Molik, and local ANZ representatives will visit more than 30 schools nationally to deliver racquets and take part in on-court activities during the month of May.

• More than 2000 schools participate in the Tennis Australia School Partnership Program
• More than 213,883 children aged between five and 12 years of age played ANZ Tennis Hot Shots in 2015/16, making it one of Australia’s most popular sport participation programs
• Tennis is the number one delivered sport through the Australian Sports Commission’s Sporting Schools initiative.

Woodbridge is looking forward to sharing his love of the sport and presenting brand new ANZ racquets to primary school students playing ANZ Tennis Hot Shots around Australia.

“The racquet initiative is a fantastic way to introduce and encourage more kids to play tennis and find the future champions of our sport,” Woodbridge said.

“In just two years ANZ has helped us introduce tennis to kids in schools by delivering 80,000 racquets across the country which is an amazing achievement.

“The School Partnership Program gives primary school students the opportunity to learn tennis as part of their curriculum and to develop healthy habits that will help keep them active and fit for life.”

Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley firmly believes sports like tennis are vital to children’s health and wellbeing at a young age.

“Sport has, and continues to play, a very significant role in the lives of all Australian families and communities,” Tiley said.

“Schools provide great opportunities for children to participate in sports, which in turn develops the physical, social and emotional skills which are critical to a child’s development.

“At Tennis Australia, we are very proud to support Australian schools and teachers in the delivery of sustainable health and physical education programs. Tennis values the importance of health and physical education, and the role which sports play in providing opportunities for children to be active.”

ANZ Head of Marketing Australia Carolyn Bendall added: “ANZ is committed to supporting the growth of tennis at all levels – from our association with ANZ Tennis Hot Shots through to our sponsorship of the Australian Open. It is great to see how this is playing out in local communities.”

This week the roadshow will visit:

VICTORIA

Bacchus Marsh Primary School, Bacchus Marsh, Vic
Kismet Park Primary School, Sunbury, Vic
St Carlo Borromeo Primary School, Greenvale, Vic
Victory Lutheran College, Wodonga, Vic
Yarrawonga P-12 College, Yarrawonga, Vic
St John’s Primary School, Euroa, Vic

NEW SOUTH WALES

South Wagga Primary School, Wagga Wagga, NSW
Lake Albert Public School, Wagga Wagga, NSW
St Joseph’s Primary School, Wagga Wagga, NSW
Springdale Heights Public School, Albury, NSW
St Patrick’s Parish School, Albury, NSW

Additional information

ANZ Tennis Hot Shots fast facts

• ANZ Tennis Hot Shots is Tennis Australia’s official development program specifically designed to introduce primary school children between five and 12 years of age to tennis. The program uses smaller courts, racquets and low compression tennis balls
• ANZ Tennis Hot Shots is one of Australia’s most popular sports participation programs for the five to 12 year old age group
• A record 213,883 children played ANZ Tennis Hot Shots nationwide in 2015/16. This is a 9 per cent increase on 2014/15
• ANZ Tennis Hot Shots is popular with both genders – 46% girls and 54% boys participated in the program in 2015/16
• There are more than 2000 Tennis Australia partner schools in Australia delivering tennis as part of their health and physical education curriculum.

Tennis Australia School Partnership Program

• Tennis is the number one delivered sport through the Australian Sports Commission’s Sporting Schools initiative
• Since January 2015, ANZ has provided 80,000 racquets to primary school students around Australia who take part in Tennis Australia’s School Partnership Program
• Tennis Australia’s School Partnership Program aims to give children the opportunity to pick up a racquet and learn tennis as part of their health and physical education curriculum
• Tennis is committed to supporting schools and teachers with the implementation and delivery of sustainable programs and quality playing opportunities
• Tennis values the importance of health and physical education and the role which sport plays in schools to provide more opportunities for students to get active and participate
• As a Tennis Australia partner school, schools receive an equipment pack, a comprehensive teaching resource with lesson plans mapped to the Australian Curriculum: Health and Physical Education developed for all student levels, as well as professional learning opportunities and opportunity to apply for line marking and on court funding assistance.

Requirements

A Tennis Australia partner school must include tennis in their health and physical curriculum for a minimum of four weeks per year, host one intra-school tennis competition each year, partner with a local Tennis Australia club and coach, have the coordinating teacher participate in professional learning and form a student committee to provide tennis equipment for students at lunch time.

All Tennis Australia school resources are linked to the Australian Curriculum: Health and Physical Education and have been endorsed by the Australian Council for Health and Physical Education Recreation (ACHPER). For more information please visit http://www.tennis.com.au/schools.

For further information on ANZ Tennis Hot Shots please visit hotshots.tennis.com.au.