We tracked down Wimbledon winner’s boyhood trainers and they …
The Black Country tennis club where a Wimbledon star began playing aged just two-and-a-half say they’re not surprised by his historic victory. Henry Searle, aged 17, from Wolverhampton[1], lifted the Boy’s Singles title at Wimbledon[2] yesterday, the first British player to do so[3] in 51 years.
Having achieved glory at the world’s most prestigious tennis tournament, his boyhood club in Wolverhampton[4] say they are “so proud” and hailed his “mental strength”. Henry began playing at Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club as a young child and developed his skills that has led him to become one of the game’s brightest talents.
Marc Hughes, general manager at Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club, said: “It’s just fantastic but I’m not surprised. Henry came here at two-and-a-half and has gone through our coaching programme, meeting all the coaches and as a club, we have been really welcoming for juniors.
“We saw Henry had some talent, a lot of talent, so the club, through all of our coaching team, has developed that to a point where he is at now. So we are not surprised (by his Wimbledon victory), he has played outstanding at the right time and at the right point, and his mental strength has been immense.
“The club is so proud of him, as his mum is, of course. Henry has been a great guy, we have all hit with him over the years.”
Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club (Image: Stuart Key)
Henry went over to Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France, aged 12, where Searle was able to hone his skills with some of tennis’ best players. Then he returned home and was inducted into the LTA National Tennis Academy at Loughborough University[6], a prestigious academy for young players.
He’s won a raft of titles in his gleaming career so far, including the 16U LTA Junior National Championships last year. In June, his reached the quarter-finals of the Roland Garros tournament.
Marc, who served in the RAF, added: “Henry’s been coached by a number of our coaches. Nick Morris was his main performance coach as he got a little bit older and then handed him over to the LTA who take on his learning.
“But he comes back here when he can and hits with people and has played for our first team this year. He’s a very busy guy now so we don’t see him as much as we used to.”
He added: “We have a lovely performance programme called the young performance and the junior performance. We have a lot of players from age five to eight. I’m sure they will be inspired by Henry’s success.”
Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club is a not-for-profit club. Find out more information by visiting www.wltsc.com[7].
References
- ^ Wolverhampton (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ Wimbledon (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ first British player to do so (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ Wolverhampton (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ Meet Henry Searle the Wolverhampton tennis star who’s just made Wimbledon history (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ LTA National Tennis Academy at Loughborough University (www.lta.org.uk)
- ^ www.wltsc.com (www.wltsc.com)